
V 




\ 



MEMOIR 



ADONIRAM JUDSON: 



BEING A SKETCH OF 



HIS LIFE AND MISSIONARY LABORS. 



BY J. CLEMENT, 

AUTHOR OP "NOBLE DEEDS OF AMERICAN WOMEN. 



" Knowest thou the leader of that train, who toil 
The everlasting Gospel's light to shed 
On earth's benighted climes? " 



AUBURN: 
DERBY AND MILLER. 



1851 



The Library 
of Congress 

washington 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1851, 
BY DERBY & MILLER, 
In the Clerk's office of the District Court of the United States for 
the Northern District of New York. 



€§t jFmirita nf c^lrrxstxiiH 3Hissinn5 ; 

AND 

ADMIRERS OF MORAL HEROISM, 

THIS VOLUME IS DEDICATED. 



PREFACE. 



The preparation of this work was not a self-imposed task : 
it was undertaken at the solicitation of the publishers, and 
by the request of parties to whom we look for an assignment 
of labors. 

No one can be more sensible than is the writer, of his 
unworthiness to be associated, in the relation of biogra- 
pher, with the good man, an outline of whose missionary- 
toils is presented in these pages. So much veneration is 
attached to his name, and such solemn grandeur to his 
character, that it may be deemed sacrilegious presumption 
for an unpretending layman to endeavor to perpetuate the 
one or to portray the other. Nor have we attempted either, 
save as a plain recital of his pioneer and persevering efforts 
for the spiritual freedom and eternal salvation of the millions 
of idolatrous Burmah may conduce to that end. 

True, even a meager sketch of his life-work must disclose 
most of his noble traits of character ; and it is to be hoped 
that the contour of the more prominent may be discernible 



VI 



PREFACE. 



in this volume. His firmness and elevation of principle, 
expansive conceptions of christian duty, simplicity and in- 
flexibility of faith, and fervor and enthusiasm of piety, are 
apparent in the portions of his journal and letters which we 
have inserted; and his practical judgment, strong executive 
capacities, untiring patience, and profound philological and 
other literary attainments, are exhibited in the nature, 
amount, and excellence of his labors, at which this work 
repeatedly hints. If there is any one trait which is not 
developed in the following pages, it is benevolence. Much 
of it, however, is implied in the fact, that he gave thirty- 
eight years of manly toil for the redemption of a people 
who robbed him under the vail of taxes cruelly levied, 
loaded him with fetters, cast him into dungeons and death- 
prisons, drove him bare-footed over burning sands, and, 
finally, to bar him from the heart of the empire and from 
the "golden presence," swung against his philanthropic heart 
the iron gates of intolerance. But he gave more than his 
days to the cause of Missions — more than his comforts a 
martyr to persecution: about fifteen hundred dollars re- 
ceived for the memoir of his second wife, and between four 
and five thousand dollars presented as a reward for his 
services as interpreter during the English and Burman war, 
were put into the treasury of the Lord. All he was, all 
he had, all he received, he cheerfully laid on the altar 
of Missions; and while, by divine grace, he was enabled 
to point others to imperishable riches, so far as it respects 



. PREFACE. Vii 

this world's goods he himself died a poor man. The only 
legacy he has left, for an invalid widow and several children, 
is a great and good name and a precious memoiy. And it 
may not be improper, in this connection, to mention that, 
with commendable generosity, the publishers of this work 
have voluntarily pledged themselves, in case profits should 
accrue from its sale, to donate a liberal portion to the sur- 
viving members of the Judson family. For this reason, if 
for no other, we could wish the work had higher merits, 
and brighter anticipations of public favor. 

In order that it might not be deemed valueless, we have 
made it as autobiographical as was consistent with our plan, 
Nearly half of these pages are extracts from Mr. Judson's 
writings, in which he details, in his modest yet highly at- 
tractive manner, his efforts to sow the seed of divine truth 
beside the waters of Burmah. For his interesting narratives 
of jungle tours, adventures at the capital of Burmah Proper, 
and errands of mercy along the shores of the Indian seas, 
and across the mighty deep, we are mainly indebted to the 
" Missionary Magazine," to files of which, from its com- 
mencement, we have had access. We have drawn so largely 
upon the rich fruits of his pen, that, should our name be 
used in connection with the work, we may with most pro- 
priety be regarded in the light of a compiler. Essential aid 
has been derived from other pens, from those of Knowles, 
Gammell, Choules, Malcom, and others, to whom indebted- 
ness is acknowledged elsewhere. 



Viii PREFACE. 

In sketching the life and labors -of Mr. Judson, we have 
incorporated as much missionary intelligence, particularly 
with reference to the stations where he labored, — those 
in Burmah Proper and the province of Maulmain, — as 
could be compressed within our prescribed limits. 

So far as the work professes to be historical, great pains 
have been taken to make it reliable. It is not improbable, 
however, that an error, here and there, may have escaped 
notice. We have consulted no author who is faultless in 
in dates ; and if, in some instances, we have been misled by 
works that are denominated standard, and have received 
indiscriminate and unqualified praise, and in others are 
guilty of misleading by our own carelessness, we have only 
to ask of the candid critic, whose services we covet rather 
than deprecate, that our faults be pointed out in kindness 
and christian love. 

Two or three works, commemorative of the name and 
services of Mr. Judson, have already appeared; and one of 
them, a lengthy and eloquent discourse on his life and 
character, is of so low a price, yet of so high a value, 
as to bring it within the reach of all, and to ensure its 
introduction into thousands of families, where a costly work 
might never gain access. 

No volume, however, that has yet appeared, possesses 
sufficient fullness to be entitled to the name of "Life" of 
Mr. Judson. While this one and its predecessors, may 
serve a humble purpose, in some , instances, finding their 



PREFACE. 



ix 



way into hands where a more expensive one would not, 
and in others, creating or sharpening an appetite for one 
of more ambitious pretensions, a work of the larger class 
is demanded, and, we are happy to say, is in a course 
of preparation. The small volume which we have pre- 
pared, can not be regarded as its rival, but may serve in 
the humble capacity of a John Baptist, to herald a worthier. 

J. C. 

Buffalo, Aug. 7, 1851. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Page. 

Mr. Judson's Birth, Education, and Conversion — Desires to be- 
come a Missionary — Visits England — Appointment as a 
Missionary — Marriage and Embarkation for India, . . 17 

CHAPTER XL 

Arrival of the Missionaries at Calcutta — Their 111 Treatment 
by the Bengal Government — Change of Religious Sentiment, 
and Baptism of Messrs. Judson and Rice 27 

CHAPTER III. 

Embarkation for the Isle of France — Return of Mr. Rice to 
America — Mr. Judson sails for Madras and thence for Ran- 
goon — Sketch of the English Mission at Rangoon — Descrip- 
tion of the Place — Character of the Burmans — Their Religion. 35 

CHAPTER IV. 

Early Labors of Mr. Judson at Rangoon — Missionary Move- 
ments among American Baptists — Mr. Judson's Literary 
Progress — Death of the First Born 48 

CHAPTER V. 



Mr. Judson joined by Mr. Hough — Printing in the Burman 
Language — First Inquirers after Truth*- Mr. Judson sails 



CONTENTS* 



for Chittagong — Driven out of his Course and Delayed — 
Mr. Hough goes to Bengal— Mr. Judson returns to Rangoon- 
Heroic Conduct of Mrs. Judson. -. . „ . . 58 

CHAPTER VL 

Appointment of Messrs. Colman and Wheelock — - Erection of a 
Zayat — Early Labors thereat — Conversion and Baptism of 
Moung Nau — Death of the King Revision of the First 
Tract — Death of Mr. Wheeloek/ ...... 68 

CHAPTER VII. 

New Inquirers, with a Description of one of them — More Bap- 
tisms — Signs of Persecution — Mr. Judson decides to visit 

the King. , .]".._-. , 78 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Messrs. Judson and Colman embark for the Capital — Voyage 
up the Irrawaddy — Introduction to the King — His Rejection 
of their Petition — They return to Rangoon — Interview with 
the Native Converts — >Mr. and Mrs. Colman go to Chittagong — 
Death of Mr. Colman . 86 

CHAPTER IX. 

More Conversions— -Progress of the work of translating the New 
Testament — Sickness of Mrs. Judson — Mr. Judson repairs 
with her to Bengal — Their Return — The Native Converts — 
The New Viceroy — Moung Ing — Mrs. Judson's 111 Health, 
and Departure for America — Clouds — Their Dispersion — 
Arrival of Dr. Price — • Return of Mr. Hough. . . 100 

CHAPTER X. 

Mr. Judson and Dr. Price visit Ava — Favorable Reception of the 
Former— Mr. Judson's Interviews with Moung Zah, with the 
King, and Prince M. — Mr. Judson's Negotiations for a Build- 
ing Lot — Sufficiently gains the End for which he had visited 
the Capital, and returns to Rangoon — State of the Mission 
there. . . . . . . • . . .117 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XI. 

Page. 

Mr. Judson returns to Burmah — Mr. and Mrs. Wade accompany 
Her — Mr. and Mrs. Judson go to Ava — Coldness of their 
Reception — Formal Removal of the Seat of Government from 
Amarapura — War with the Bengal Government — Bombard- 
ment of Rangoon, and Persecution of the Missionaries there — 
Messrs. Hough and Wade go to Calcutta. . . .. 129> 

' CHAPTER XII. 

Movements at Ava, on the Fall of Rangoon — Arrest, Examina- 
tion, and Discharge of Mr. J udson and Dr. Price — Their Con- 
finement and Sufferings in the Death Prison — Persecution, 
Trials, and Heroic Conduct of Mrs. Judson. . . . 143 



CHAPTER XIII. 

Mr. Judson and other Prisoners taken to Oung-pen-la— Cause 
of then* Removal — Mrs. Judson follows her Husband — Suf- 
ferings of the Judson Family — Progress of the English 
Army up the Irrawaddy — Messrs. Judson and Price taken - 
from Prison to assist in Xegotiations for Peace — Sickness of 
Mrs. Judson — War Closes — Dr. Price remains at Ava — His 
Death — Mr. and Mrs. Judson go to Rangoon. . . . 163 



CHAPTER XIV. 

Retrospect of the Mission — Mr. and Mrs. Judson remove to 
Amherst — Mr. Judson goes to Ava, in connection with the 
English Embassy — Returns to Amherst — Death of Mrs. Jud- 
son — Return of Mr. and Mrs. Wade, accompanied by Mr. and 
Mrs. Boardman — Death of Mr. Judson's Daughter. . . 176 



CHAPTER XV. 

Establishment of the Maulmain Mission, by Mr. Boardman — 
Messrs. Judson and Wade remove thither — Mr. Boardman re- 
moves to Tavoy — His Death — Mr. Judson renounces the 
Title of D. D. — Arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Bennett — Messrs. 
Judson and Wade visit Rangoon — Mr. Judson proceeds to 
Frome — His Return to Rangoon. . , 188 



XIV 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XVI 

Pag«* 

Labors of Mr. Judson at Rangoon— Removal to Maulmain — 
Arrival of Messrs. Mason, Kincaid, and Jones — Mr. Jndson 
travels in the Jungle, and establishes • the Christian Communi- 
ties of Wadesville, Newville, and Chummerah — Another Tour 
among the Karens. . . ... ... 205 



CHAPTER XVII 

Arrival of Mr. Cutter — Messrs. Kincaid and Cutter visit Ava — 
Mr. and Mrs. Wade sail for the United States — -Arrival of 
Messrs. Brown and Webb, and Miss Harrington — Mr. Judson 
completes the Translation of the Bible — Marries Mrs. Board- 
man — Return of Mr. and Mrs. Wade with Messrs. Howard, 
Vinton, Comstock, Dean, and Osgood, and Miss Gardner — 
Mr. Judson's Labors— -Mr. Malcom's Visit — Growth of the 
Churches. . . . . / ' . - ". . . 218 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

Retrospect of Mr. Judson's Career— Review of the Progress of 
Baptist Missions — Illness of Mr. Judson, Voyage to Calcutta 
and Return — Maulmain Theological Seminary, and other 
Schools — Revised Edition of the Burman Bible — Rangoon 
abandoned by the Missionaries — The Judson Family visit 
Calcutta and Serampore — Loss of a Member — The Survivors 
proceed to the Isle France — Return to Maulmain. . . 231 



CHAPTER XIX. 

Mr. Judson commences a Burman Dictionary— Labors of his As- 
sociates — Condition of the Maulmain Mission Churches — 
Printing — Maulmain Missionary Society —Arrival of Messrs. 
Binney and Bullard — Baptismal Scene, <fec. — Illness of Mrs. 
Judson — Mr. Judson decides to visit America. . . 244 



CHAPTER XX 



Embarkation of the Judson Family for the United States — 
Hopes and Fears, and Changes of Plans at the Isle of France — 



CONTENTS. XV 

Page. 

Voyage continued — Mrs. Judson's last Hours — Her Death 
and Burial at St. Helena — Mr. Judson arrives in Boston — 
His Reception there — Dr. Sharp's Address — An Incident. 256 



CHAPTER XXI. 

Mr. Judson at the Meeting of the Convention in 1845 — Dr. 
Wayland's Address to him — Interesting Scene in the Con- 
vention — Mr. Judson's Reception at Richmond — Address of 
J. B. Jeter — Mr. Judson's Private Character — He marries 
Miss Chubbuck — Farewell Services in Boston — Mr. Judson's 
Address. . . . . . - . . fffiS 

CHAPTER XXII. 

Mr. and Mrs. Judson embark for Burniak — Messrs. Beecher and 
Hams, and Miss Lilly bridge accompany them — Changes at 
Maulmain — -Growth, of the Churches there — Mr. and Mrs. 
Judson repair to Rangoon — State of Civil and Religious Mat- 
ters in Burmah Proper — Return to Maulmain — Arrival of Mr. 
and Mrs. Moore — Newton and Maulmain Stations. . . 294 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

Christian Reciprocity — Mr. Judson proposes to visit Ava — 
Temporary Abandonment of the Project — Failure of Mr. 
Abbott to re-enter Burmah Proper — Messrs. Kincaid and 
Dawson appointed to the Ava Mission — Latest Intelligence 
from them — The Burman Dictionary 309 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

Mr. Judson's last Illness — Fruitless Efforts for his Restoration — 
Beautiful Decline of a Life of Faith — Mr. Judson embarks for 
the Isle of Bourbon — Mr. Ranney accompanies him — Last 
Moments of Mr. Judson — His Death and Burial. . . 321 



OUTLINE 

OF THE 

LIFE AND MISSIONARY LABORS 

OF 

REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON. 



CHAPTER I. 

Mr. Judson's Birth, Education, and Conversion — Desires to become a Mis 
sionary— Visits England— Appointment as a Missionary — Marriage and En 
barkation for India. 

Adonieam Jtjdsox was the son of a Congrega 
tional clergyman, and was bom in Maiden, Massa- 
chusetts, on the 9th of August, 1788. His father 
early and anxiously strove to imbue his mind with 
the principles of the divine word, and to develop 
his moral sensibilities; but, as is frequently the 
case, the seed seasonably sown did not take root 
immediately, nor show any promise for years. The 
son fitted for college in an impenitent state, and 
graduated at Brown University, in 1807, a deist in 
sentiment, and with the prospect that his talents 
and learning would be of no service to the world. 
But He, who sees the end from the beginning, and 
brings wondrous things to pass, had marked out 
for our young graduate a path which led through 



18 THE MISSION AET LABOES 

the valley of humiliation, across fields of highest 
usefulness, and over the hill-tops of the morally 
sublime. 

Soon after leaving college, he commenced a tour 
designed to embrace the United States, but had 
hardly entered upon it, before some providential 
occurrence shattered his skeptical sentiments, and 
led him to examine the evidences of the inspiration 
of Scripture. Restless and unhappy; losing all 
relish for traveling; sick of the vanities of the 
world, and tired of feeding his famishing spirit on 
the husks of unbelief and sin, he returned to his 
father's house, and soon raised the important in- 
quiry, " What must I do to be saved ? " 

A short time before this date, the theological 
seminary at Andover, in his native state, had been 
opened; and he now became anxious to avail him- 
self of its superior advantages for the investigation 
of religious truth. According to its rules, no one 
could be admitted without evidence of piety ; but, 
notwithstanding this embarrassing circumstance, he 
was so eager to obtain religious instruction, that, 
without attempting to conceal his moral unfitness, 
he presented himself for membership. It was a 
singular request, and might, under some circum- 
stances, have received the prompt refusal of the 
faculty ; but, in this instance, they wisely decided 
to so far deviate from their regulations, as to allow 
him to remain and receive instruction, though he 
was not, at first, enrolled among the theological 
students. In two or three months he became the 



OF ADOXIBAM JUDSON". 



10 



subject of renewing grace, and there was no longer 
any doubt about the propriety of considering him a 
regular member of the institution. 

With his pride measurably subdued, and his am- 
bition sanctified, he was now prepared to live for 
some high purpose. Feeling the power of the gos- 
pel, and anxious that the world might reap its 
benefits, he applied himself, with the utmost dili- 
gence, to fit himself for the ministry. 

While engaged in his theological studies, Dr. Bu- 
chanan's sermon, entitled " The Star in the East," 
fell into his hands, and its perns al kindled all the 
fire of his soul into a living and quenchless flame, 
and gave his thoughts a new direction. The scope 
of his christian sympathies became enlarged; the 
tone of his prayers was changed, and their subjects 
multiplied ; and he hinted to some of his intimate 
friends, that it was, perhaps, his duty to engage 
in missionary labor. There was then no society 
in this country to which he could look for support, 
and the persons to whom he communicated his 
impressions, gave him but little encouragement: he 
therefore wrote to the directors of the London Mis- 
sionary Society, stating his feelings on the subject 
of missions, and asking for advice and information. 
His letter elicited an encouraging reply, and he was 
invited to visit England, and receive personally the 
information desired. 

About this time, several of his fellow students 
also had their attention called to the subject of 
missions, and some of them resolved to embark in 



20 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



the enterprise as soon as a way could be provided. 
They were all Congregationalists ; and were desirous 
that their christian brethren should know their feel- 
ings and impressions of duty: accordingly, when 
the Massachusetts association of ministers of that 
denomination met at Bradford, in June, 1810, the 
following document, prepared by Mr. Judson, and 
signed by himself, Samuel Nott, Samuel J. Mills, 
and Samuel Newell, was presented : 

" The undersigned, members of the divinity col- 
lege, respectfully request the attention of their rev- 
erend fathers, convened in the general association at 
Bradford, to the following statement and inquiries : 

" They beg leave to state, that their minds have 
been long impressed with the duty and importance 
of personally attempting a mission to the heathen; 
that the impressions on their minds have induced 
a serious and, they trust, a prayerful consideration 
of the subject in its various attitudes, particularly in 
relation to the probable success, and the difficulties 
attending such an attempt ; and that, after examin- 
ing all the information which they can obtain, they 
consider themselves as devoted to this work for life, 
whenever God, in his providence, shall open the way. 

" They now offer the following inquiries, on which 
they solicit the opinion and advice of this associa- 
tion: Whether, with their present views and feel- 
ings, they ought to renounce the object of missions 
as visionary or impracticable; if not, whether they 
ought to direct their attention to the eastern or the 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



21 



western world ; whether they may expect patronage 
and support from a missionary society in this conn- 
try, or- must commit themselves to the direction of a 
European society; and what preparatory measures 
they ought to take previous to actual engagement ? 

" The undersigned, feeling their youth and inexpe- 
rience, look up to their fathers in the chmch, and re- 
spectfully solicit their advice, direction, and prayers." 

This paper was referred to a special committee, 
who, after much deliberation and prayer, reported, 
in substance, That the object of missions is one of 
the utmost importance; that the command, " Go ye 
into all the world, and preach the gospel to every 
creature," is sacred and binding ; and that the pecu- 
liar and strong convictions by which the memorial- 
ists were influenced, should probably be regarded 
as a divine intimation in respect to the duty of 
American christians in the work of spreading the 
truth. It was voted " That there be instituted, by this 
general association, a Board of Commissioners for 
Foreign Missions, for the purpose of devising ways 
and means, and adopting -and prosecuting measures 
for promoting the spread of the gospel in heathen 
lands." Such was the origin of an organization 
which soon rallied to its support the concentrated 
forces of the Congregationalists and Presbyterians 
throughout the United States ; and which had, in a 
few years, established its missions at Bombay, Cey- 
lon, Siam, on the Mediterranean, in the Sandwich 
Islands, and among several tribes of Indians, and 



■ 22 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



identified itself with many of the noblest triumphs 

of truth in modern times. 

Anxious to be engaged in the work for which 
their hearts yearned, Mr. Judson and his compan- 
ions desired a prompt official assignment of their 
stations ; but no plan of operation being matured, 
and no funds raised, the Board advised them to 
continue their connection with the institution, and 
to wait patiently until Providence should open the 
way for their departure. 

The missionary spirit had then warmed but few 
hearts in America, and Mr. Judson feared that, if he 
depended for support on the churches at home, he 
might not be appointed for years ; he therefore, by 
permission of the Board, sailed for England in Jan- 
uary, 1811, with instructions to ascertain whether 
the London Society would cooperate with the Amer- 
ican Board, and whether the former would render 
any aid, should the latter need it, in order to sustain 
a mission. The vessel in which he embarked, was 
captured by a French privateer, about twenty days 
after sailing, and he was detained several weeks on 
board, lie was then taken to Bayonne, and thrown 
into prison. Through the intercession of some of 
his own countrymen, he was, ere long, released on 
parol, and after some delay and great exertions, the 
emperor was induced to grant him a passport. He 
had been so long delayed that he did not reach 
England until May — four months after sailing. 

His mission to London was not wholly unsuccess- 
ful, though he was unable to secure a concert of 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSOiT. 



23 



measures between the two missionary associations. 
The London body doubtless thought that American 
christians should support missionaries of their own, 
nor had they much faith in the successful working 
of a jurisdiction divided by an ocean three thousand 
miles wide. The directors of the foreign society, 
however, promised full support to Mr. Jndson and 
his associates, in case of failure to do as much on 
the part of the American Board. Leaving the mat- 
ter in this indefinite state, Mr. Jndson returned.. 

A meeting of the Board of Commissioners was 
held at Worcester, Mass., in September following, 
and Mr. Jndson and one of his associates attended, 
and expressed a desire to be appointed, if the Board 
thought proper, without delay. They also stated, 
that if the Board did not feel warranted in promis- 
ing them support, they would, if no serious objections 
were made, put themselves under the patronage of 
the foreign society. The prospect of a war between 
the United States and Great Britain seemed to ren- 
der it necessary that the course to be adopted should 
be decided upon at once. The American Board had 
been organized but three months; its funds were 
scanty ; and what dependence could be placed on 
the liberality of the churches, was then unknown ; 
nevertheless, trusting in God to further their efforts, 
the Board nobly decided to establish a mission in 
Burmah. This decision made, the proffered services 
of the young students were needed ; and Messrs. 
Judson, Newell, Nott, and Gordon JIall, were forth- 
with appointed. Three others, among whom was 



24 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Luther Rice, were soon afterward set apart to the 
same work. 

When at Bradford., in the year 1810, Mr. Judson 
became acquainted with Miss Ann Hasseltine, a 
native of that town, and the daughter of Mr. John 
Hasseltine. She was then in the twenty-first year 
of her age ; had been educated at the celebrated 
academy located there; and possessing a polished, 
active, clear, and strong mind, ardent piety, and a 
prepossessing person, she made a deep and abiding 
impression on his heart. Their acquaintance was 
soon afterward renewed, and ere long Mr. Judson 
offered her his hand, accompanied by the proposi- 
tion for her to forsake not only her parents, birth- 
place, and friends, but native land also: hence, to 
accept his offer required no ordinary decision of 
character. She examined the subject in all its bear- 
ings, and after much prayer, with few earthly friends 
to encourage her, she decided, from conviction of 
duty which she could not resist, that, with her pa- 
rents' consent, she would encounter the hardships 
and dangers attendant upon an unbroken missionary 
path. 

In compliance with a hint from Miss Hasseltine, 
Mr. Judson wrote to her father asking his consent 
to the proposed union. The following extract shows 
the candor and frankness of Mr. Judson; his devo- 
tion of purpose, and sense of the sacrifice a parent 
must make in giving up a daughter under such pe- 
culiar circumstances : 



OF ADOOTBAM JUDSON. 



25 



u I have now to ask, whether you can consent to 
part with your daughter early next spring, to see her 
no more in this world ; whether you can consent to 
her departure for a heathen land, and her subjection 
to the hardships and sufferings of a missionary life ? 
whether you can consent to her exposure to the dan- 
gers of the ocean ; to the fatal influence of the south- 
ern climate of India; to every kind of want and 
distress ; to degradation, insult, persecution, and per- 
haps a violent death? Can you consent to all this, 
for the sake of Him who left his heavenly home, and 
died for her and for you — for the sake of perishing 
immortal souls — for the sake of Zion, and the glory 
of God? Can you consent to all this, in hope of soon 
meeting your daughter in the world of glory with a 
crown of righteousness, brightened by the acclama- 
tions of praise which shall redound to her Saviour 
from heathens saved, through her means, from eter- 
nal woe and despair?" 

The parent thus honorably addressed, obeyed the 
voice of duty at the sacrifice of feeling, and gave his 
daughter to the cause of missions, for the sake of the 
first great Missionary, who had freely given his life 
a ransom for many. Mr. Hasseltine's was the first 
offering of the kind in America ; it was made under 
the most trying circumstances, and shows, that love 
for Christ can loosen the coils of selfishness, and that 
faith can relinquish the brightest jewels of the heart. 

The marriage took place at Bradford, on the 

5th of February, 1812. On the 16th, Mr. Judson, 
2 



26 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



together with Messrs. Newell, Nott, Eice, and Hall, 
was ordained as a foreign missionary, at Salem. It 
was the first ceremony of the kind ever performed 
by American Protestants. From its novelty and 
importance it was fraught with peculiar interest, 
and an unusual degree of excitement. Drs. Griffin, 
Woods, Morse, "Worcester, and Spring, conducted the 
exercises. 

On the 19th of the same month, Messrs. Judson 
and Newell, with their wives, sailed from Salem, in 
the Caravan, for Calcutta. The enterprise in which 
they that day embarked was in its infancy in this 
land ; only here and there a christian had faith in its 
expediency or success ; and, hence, when our young 
missionary adventurers went down to the ship, but 
few persons accompanied them. With scarcely a 
parting hand to take at the vessel's side ; without a 
formal christian benediction to comfort them, or an 
inspiring anthem to drown the chilling roar of the 
wintry surge, and carry their souls on buoyant wings 
to heaven, they weighed anchor, floated out of the 
harbor, and, as they supposed, lost sight forever of 
their native land. 

On the 24th of the same month, Messrs. Nott and 
Hall, with then- wives, and Mr. Eice, sailed from 
Philadelphia, in the ship Harmony, all bound for 
Calcutta. Thence, if practicable, they were to pro- 
ceed to the Burman empire ; otherwise they were to 
seek such unoccupied field in India as seemed the 
most inviting. 



CHAPTEE II. 



Arrival of the Missionaries at Calcutta— Their 111 Treatment by the Bengal 
Government — Change of Religious Sentiment, and Baptism of Messrs. Jud* 
son and Rice. 

The first American heralds of the gospel to the 
heathen were now afloat npon the trackless deep, 
bearing toward their field of contemplated labor ; 
and it was an important epoch in the history of 
our chnrches. The question, "What will be the result 
of this movement ? must have occupied many minds, 
and received answers corresponding to the degree 
of faith animating the souls of the self-questioners. 
Some, doubtless, saw, in imagination, the wreck of 
the Caravan, the loss of its precious freight, and the 
termination of the enterprise ; others, perhaps, beheld 
these adventurous pioneers wilting beneath a tropic 
sun on a foreign shore, or perishing at the hands 
of the ungrateful and benighted people to whom 
they had been commissioned to carry the message 
of salvation; and a few had hopes — though proba- 
bly not the strongest — that a mission might be es- 
tablished which would be permanent, powerful, and 



28 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



ramifying. But who, among the most sanguine 
friends of the great enterprise, had even the faintest 
conception of its importance, the magnanimity in 
reserve for it, and the glory with which He, who 
was its author, and is still its head, had resolved to 
crown it. 

God had a noble part for Mr. Judson to perform, 
and he and his associates were borne across three 
oceans with unusual rapidity, and permitted to land 
in safety at Calcutta, on the 18th of June, 1812. Dr. 
Carey, of the English Baptist Mission, which was 
established in Bengal in 1793, greeted them with 
christian cordiality, welcomed them to the country, 
and gave them an invitation, too pressing and op- 
portune to be refused, to join the mission family at 
Serampore, until the arrival of Mr. Rice and his 
companions, who had sailed five days after the 
Caravan. 

Serampore is fifteen miles above Calcutta, and 
thither the missionaries repaired the day after their 
arrival. 

They had shared the hospitalities of Messrs. Ca- 
rey, "Ward, and Marshman's pleasant families, about 
ten days, when Messrs. Judson and Newell were 
summoned to the government house, and ordered 
to return to the United States with their wives, in 
the ship which brought them out; otherwise she 
could not receive a clearance. The authority of the 
British East India Company, which had jurisdic- 
tion over that part of the country, was peremptory ; 
and there being no hope that the order would be 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



29 



remanded, the missionaries concluded to remove to 
some part of India beyond their control.* 

As the missionaries had been directed by the 
Board of Commissioners to establish, if possible, a 
mission somewhere in the Bnrman empire, they, 
wished to comply with this instruction ; but the un- 
settled state of things between that government and 
the English, seemed to render the attempt at that 
time impracticable. A vessel, bound for the Isle of 
France, was about to sail ; and obtaining permission 
to leave on her, Messrs. Judson and Newell sought 
a passage. Her accommodations were such, how- 
ever, that berths could be . procured for only two 
persons ; and it was decided that Mr. Newell and 
lady should embark. Mr. Judson could find no 
other passage readily ; and in about six weeks after 
their first landing in Calcutta, he and his wife were 
joined by the company that sailed in the Harmony. 

During the voyage to India, it occurred to Mr. 
Judson, that he should there meet the English Bap- 
tist missionaries, and, perhaps, have occasion to dis- 
cuss the question of baptism ; accordingly, while 
engaged in translating the Scriptures, he examined 
this point very critically, and before the voyage was 
ended he had nearly decided that immersion was 



* "Without canvassing the motives by which the East India com- 
pany were actuated in their treatment of these missionaries, it is 
enough to say, that when, in 1813, their charter was renewed, it was 
so amended, through the influence of Wilberforce, Fuller, and other 
christian philanthropists, as to countenance missionary effort by 
whomsoever made. 



so 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



the primitive and only legitimate mode. In this 
opinion he was fully confirmed after a few weeks' 
examination of the subject, while waiting on foreign 
and forbidden grounds for an opportunity to depart. 
He announced his change of sentiments to the mis- 
sionaries at Serampore, in the following letter: 

TO MESSES. CAREY, MARSHMAN, AND WARD. 

Calcutta, August 27, 1812. 

As you have been ignorant of the late exercises 
of my mind on the subject of baptism, the commu- 
nication which I am about to make, may occasion 
you some surprise. 

It is now about four months, since I took the sub- 
ject into serious and prayerful consideration. My 
inquiries commenced during my passage from Amer- 
ica, and after much laborious research and painful 
trial, which I shall not now detail, have issued in 
entire conviction, that the immersion of a professing 
believer is the only christian baptism. 

In these exercises I have not been alone. Mrs. 
Judson has been engaged in a similar examination, 
and has come to the same conclusion. Feeling,, 
therefore, that we are in an unbaptized state, we 
wish to profess our faith in Christ by being baptized 
in obedience to his sacred commands. 

Adonieam Judson, Jr. 

Four days afterward he sent a copy of the above 
letter to Rev. Thomas Baldwin, of Boston, accom- 
panying it with the following note : 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



31 



" I write you a line, to express my grateful ac- 
knowledgments to you, for the advantage I have 
derived from your publications on baptism ; particu- 
larly from your 4 Series of Letters ; ' also to introduce 
the following copy of a letter, which I forwarded 
last week to the Baptist missionaries at Serampore, 
and which you are at liberty to use as you think 
best." 

Having become a Baptist, Mr. Judson could not 
expect the continued support of the Commissioners 
in America, should Providence see fit to open a field 
of labor for him in the East; accordingly he ad- 
dressed a letter to Hev. Dr. Worcester, in which he 
says : 

" My change of sentiments on the subject of bap- 
tism, is considered by my missionary brethren, as 
incompatible with my continuing their fellow-laborer 
in the mission which they contemplate on the island 
of Madagascar; — and it will, I presume, be con- 
sidered by the Board of Commissioners as equally 
incompatible with my continuing their missionary. 
The Board will, undoubtedly, feel as unwilling to 
support a Baptist missionary, as I feel to comply 
with their instructions, which particularly direct us to 
baptize ' credible believers, with their households.' " 

The remainder of the letter, which is expressive 
of Mr. Judson's feelings on being obliged to dissolve 
his connection with the Board, is as follows : 



32 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" The dissolution of my connection with the Board 
of Commissioners, and a separation from my dear 
missionary brethren, I consider most distressing con- 
sequences of my late change of sentiments ; and in- 
deed, the most distressing events which have ever 
"befallen me. I have now the prospect before me 
of going alone to some distant island, unconnected 
with any society at present existing, from which I 
might be furnished with assistant laborers or pecu- 
niary support. "Whether the Baptist churches in 
America will compassionate my situation, I know 
not. I hope, therefore, that while my friends con- 
demn what they deem a departure from the truth, 
they will at least pity me, and pray for me." 

This letter was written at Calcutta, the first day 
of September, 1812. At the same date Mr. Judson 
addressed one to Rev. Lucius Bolles, of Salem, in 
which he says : 

" Within a few months I have experienced an en- 
tire change of sentiments on the subject of baptism. 
My doubts concerning the correctness of my former 
system of belief, commenced during my passage from 
America to this country; and after many painful 
trials, which none can know, but those who are taught 
to relinquish a system in which they had been edu- 
cated, I settled down in the full persuasion, that the 
immersion of a professing believer in Christ is the 
only christian baptism. 



OF ADOXIRAM JTtDSON. 



38 



" Mrs. Jnclson is united with me in this persua- 
sion. We have signified onr views and wishes to 
the Baptist missionaries at Serampore, and expect 
to be baptized in this city next Lord's day. 

" A separation from my missionary brethren, and 
a dissolution of my connection with the Board of 
Commissioners, seem to be necessary consequences. 
The missionaries at Serampore are exerting them- 
selves to the utmost of their ability, in managing and 
supporting their extensive and complicated mission. 

" Under these circumstances, I look to you. Alone, 
in this foreign, heathen land, I make my appeal to 
those, whom, with their permission, I will call my 
Baptist brethren in the United States." 

Rev. Samuel ISTott, one of the brethren who thought 
it not advisable for Mr. Judson to accompany them 
to Madagascar, bears the following testimony to 
the honesty of his motives in becoming a Baptist : 
" From the time of my arrival in Calcutta, I knew 
intimately the labor of his mind ; and I declare my 
full conviction, that he gave the subject the most 
thorough and serious examination, studying care- 
fully the Scriptures, and all the authors he could 
find on the subject; that he studied it religiously; 
and that, in all his conversation upon it, he seemed 
under a solemn and deep religious impression. In- 
deed he manifested a real enthusiasm upon it. It 
occupied his whole mind. Should I blame him 
at all, it would not be for sinister motives and 

insincere professions, but for suffering his mind to 
2* 



34 



MISSIONARY LABORS 



lose, in some measure, the calmness and coolness 
desirable in the consideration of argument. But, 
be that as it may, if I ever beheld evidence of piety 
in any man, I beheld it then in him." 

Mr. and Mrs. Judson were baptized by Rev. Mr. 
Ward, on the sixth of the month. Mr. Rice also 
met with a similar change of views, and was bap- 
tized on the first of November following. 

A short time after this change of views, Mr. Jud- 
son delivered a discourse, embodying the strong 
arguments in favor of believers' baptism and im- 
mersion as the only proper mode. This discourse 
was immediately printed by the English Baptists at 
Serampore, and Dr. Carey pronounced it one of the 
best on the subject he had ever heard. Several 
editions have been printed in this country. 



CHAPTEE III. 



Embarkation for the Isle of France — Return of Mr. Rice to America — Mr. Jud- 
son sails for Madras and thence for Rangoon — Sketch of the English Mission 
at Rangoon— Description of the Place — Character of the Burmans — Their 
Religion. 

We now behold Mr. Judson in a truly perplexing 
condition. Severed from the Board of Commission- 
ers, and ignorant of what he should receive at the 
hands of American Baptists, he was ordered out of 
the country, and knew not whither to flee. In this 
trying state he stood, waiting for an opportunity to 
sail for Java, Persia, South America, or any other 
part of the world where he could be useful in the 
service of his Master, when the Bengal government 
issued an order requiring the missionaries to embark 
in one of the East India Company's ships, then just 
ready to sail for England. Messrs. Judson and Pice 
were accompanied to their abode by an officer, who 
impudently ordered them to remain within doors, 
until permitted to do otherwise. Their names were 
printed in the list of passengers, but they were de- 
termined not to go to England. Learning that a 
ship, called the Creole, would sail in two days for 



36 THE MISSIONARY LABORS 

the Isle of France, they applied for a passport, but 
were refused. Nevertheless, they persuaded the 
captain to let them embark, and, every thing on 
board, they set sail at night. A government dis- 
patch chased them down the .river, and at the end 
of two days overtook them, and ordered them to be 
put on shore. With sad hearts they sought lodgings 
near the river's margin, and saw the ship proceed on 
her way. After much perplexity, and three days' 
delay, they obtained a pass from the magistrate, to 
return to the Creole : and hurrying down the river ? 
overtook her at Saugar roads, seventy miles distant, 
where she had lain at anchor two days. 

After about seven weeks' sail, Mr. Judson reached 
the Isle of France, on the 17th of January, 1813, and 
found Mr. Newell mourning the loss of his wife, and 
an infant daughter, born at sea. 

Messrs. Judson and Rice had been on the island 
laboring for souls about two months, when it was 
deemed expedient that the latter should return to 
the United States to create, if possible, an interest 
among the Baptist denomination, in the cause of 
foreign missions. 

"Not satisfied with having driven the missionaries 
from Calcutta, the directors notified the governor of 
the Isle of France, of their presence, and directed 
him to keep a vigilant eye on their movements. The 
governor, however, paid but little regard to such 
instruction; and they were allowed the freedom of 
the island. But Mr. Judson had not visited the Isle 
of France with the intention of remaining there 



OF ADOXIRAAE JTDSOX. 



37 



He had, at first, the island of Madagascar in view ; 
but learning it would be impossible to establish a 
mission there, he determined to try the experiment 
at Penang, or Prince of Wales' island. As a direct 
passage thither could not be obtained, Mr. and Mrs. 
Judson concluded to sail for Madras, the seat of one 
of the presidencies of Hindostan, hoping to proceed 
thence to the field imder contemplation. They left 
the Isle of France about the middle of May, and 
reached Madras the early part of June. Here they 
learned that the Honorable Company's government 
accused the American missionaries of being spies — 
there being war at that time between England 
and the United States — and had lately attempted 
to send Messrs. Hall and Nott to England. This 
renewed assurance of hostility led Mr. Judson to 
fear lest he might receive similar orders, and he re- 
solved to leave the place at the earliest opportunity. 
He forthwith ascertained that there was but one ship 
in the Madras roads that would leave before the 
authorities at Calcutta might hear of his return to 
India ; that one was bound to Eangoon, the principal 
port in the Burman empire. Erom the unsettled 
state of things there, Mr. Judson dreaded to attempt 
a mission ; but finding no passage to Penang, and 
deeming it expedient to hasten from Madras, he took 
leave of the English missionaries and others who 
had kindly entertained him, and sailed for Burmah, 
on the 22d of the month in which he arrived. 

The shores of the Indian seas are lined with 
hidden reefs of coral ; and as the passage was 



38 THE MISSIONARY LABORS 

unusually boisterous, the missionaries were exposed 
to imminent perils. But God had them in keep- 
ing, — and after tossing on the furious waves for 
three weeks, with these reefs looking upward at times 
with horrible threatening, they anchored in the har- 
bor of Eangoon. It was a memorable day, in 1813 ; 
and the 14th of July should be sacred to every 
American Baptist, — it being the anniversary of the 
landing of their first representative on the shores of 
Burmah. Adoniram Judson that day entered upon a 
work which has honored the Baptist name through- 
out Christendom, and given him a fame too pure to 
covet the " storied urn," and too enduring to trust 
itself with the " animated " but pulverizing " bust." 

Rangoon had previously been the seat of a mis- 
sion. Rev. Messrs. Chater and Mardon made a 
visit to the place in January, 1807, under the direc- 
tion of the English Baptist .Missionary Society ; and 
on returning to Serampore, the following May, made 
a favorable report. It was consequently decided to 
commence operations there, the mission to be under 
the direction of the gentlemen at Serampore. Mr. 
Charter and Mr. Felix Carey, a son of Dr. Carey, 
were accordingly designated as laborers there, and 
sailed with their wives in November. In 1810, they 
were joined by Rev. Messrs. Pritchett and Brain, 
from the London Missionary Society. The latter 
soon died ; and as the Burman government held bel- 
ligerent relations to the Siamese, the former in a 
short time departed for a more promising field. In 
1811, the country was sundered by the revolt of 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



89 



the Muggs and Rachmers ; war among the different 
princes of Bnrmah threatened Rangoon; and Mr. 
Chater forsook the station, and went to Ceylon. In 
1813, Mr. Carey went to Ava, to inocnlate some 
members of the royal family, and departed thence 
to Serampore. 

Thus, on the arrival of Mr. Judson at Rangoon, 
he found that Providence had vacated the station 
for him. Of all its members, Mrs. Carey alone 
remained. She being the sole occupant of the 
mission-house, he had but to enter the unoccupied 
apartments, and prepare for his great work, and the 
baptism of suffering and sorrow which awaited him. 

Rangoon is situated on a river of the same name, 
which resembles a broad bay, being six miles wide 
at its mouth. It is one of the outlets of the Irra- 
waddy. The town is about thirty miles from the 
sea ; is built on marshy land, and has an excellent 
harbor. It is not very prepossessing in its appear- 
ance, and, at some seasons of the year, when the 
water is high, is said to resemble " a neglected 
swamp." In 1813, its population was estimated at 
forty thousand. It is the only seaport except Bas- 
sein. Its commerce is extensive, and it is second 
only, in importance as a city, to Ava. The latter is 
the capital of the empire, and lies on the Irrawaddy, 
three hundred and fifty miles above the former. 

The Burman empire was, at the period of which 
we are speaking, about a thousand miles long and 
six hundred wide. Among its kingdoms were Ava, 
Pegu, Mergui, Tavoy, and Arracan. Others were 



40 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



added by Nunsun, who ascended the throne in 1819. 
A war with the British, of which we shall have oc- 
casion to speak hereafter, lessened its dominions. 
The name of the reigning monarch in 1813, was 
Menderagyee, who ascended the throne in 1782, and 
died in 1819. 

The Burmans have some good and as many bad 
traits of character. They are active, industrious, 
persevering, hospitable and courteous to strangers, 
yet filthy, sensual, deceitful, crafty, and thievish; 
and, when governed by rapacious rulers, are cun- 
ning, -false, and perjurious. Their lives are said to 
be " wasted in the profitless alternation of sensual 
ease, rude drudgery, and active sport. ]STo ele- 
ments," the same writer adds, "exist for the im- 
provement of posterity, and successive generations 
pass, like the crops upon their fields. Were there 
but a disposition to improve the mind, and distrib- 
ute benefits, what majesty of piety might we not 
hope to see in a country so favored with the means 
of subsistence, and so cheap in its modes of living ! 
Instead of the many objects of an American's am- 
bition, and the increasing anxiety to amass property, 
the Burman sets a limit to his desires, and when 
that is reached, gives himself to repose and enjoy- 
ment. Instead of wearing himself out in endeavors 
to equal or surpass his neighbor in dress, food, furni- 
ture, or house, he easily attains the customary stand- 
ard, beyond which he seldom' desires to go." 

It is not our purpose to enter into the details of the 
grossness and degradation of the Burman character ; 



OF ADOXIRAM JTDSOX. 



41 



the picture would be too revolting. It is enough 
to say that it is drawn in the first chapter of Ro- 
mans, — where its colors stand out in boldest relief, 
and give us the deepest and most melancholy im- 
pression of the debasing power of sin. 

Sin ! what ravages it has made in the world, and 
how sad to contemplate its effects, especially upon 
the mind ! " Witness its lofty powers bowed down 
ih ignominious servitude to base corporeal appetites, 
and furious and debasing passions. See how the 
understanding is darkened, the will perverted, and 
the heart alienated from all that is holy. See reason 
and conscience dethroned, and selfishness reigning in 
gloomy and undisputed tyranny over the immortal 
mind, while appetite and passion have become its 
obsequious panders. See how the affections turn 
away with loathing from God, and what a wall of 
separation has sprung up between man and his ITa- 
ker; how deeply and universally he has revolted 
from his rightful Sovereign, and has chosen other 
gods to rule over him." — "Hitchcock's Religion of 
Geology," page 103. Such is the character of all 
pagan nations ; thus debased and blinded were the 
Burin ans when Mr. Judson entered their empire. 

Before giving an account of the labors of !Mr. 
Judson among these people, it seems proper to pre- 
sent an epitome of their religion, to the overthrow 
of which those labors were to be directed. They 
belong to the sect of Buddhists, from Buddh, their 
term for divinity. Buddhs have been innumerable, 
some in most worlds, but in no one more than five. 



42 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



Ours has had four, of whom Gauclama was the last. 
He was born 625 years before Christ, and lived in 
this world about eighty years. He was the son of 
Thokedawdarek, king of Benares. " He had pre- 
viously lived in four hundred millions of worlds, 
and passed through innumerable conditions in each. 
In this world, he had been almost every sort of 
worm, fly, fowl, fish, or animal, and almost every 
grade and condition of human life. . Having, in 
the course of these transitions, attained immense 
merit, he at length was born son of the above- 
named king. 

" The moment he was born, he jumped upon his 
feet, a,nd, spreading out his arms, exclaimed, c Now 
am I the noblest of men ! This is the last time I 
shall ever be born ! ' His height when grown up, 
was nine cubits. His ears were so beautifully long 
as to hang upon his shoulders ; his hands reached to 
his knees; his fingers were of equal length; and 
with his tongue he could touch the end of his nose ! 
all which are considered irrefragable proofs of his 
divinity." 

The only sacred books of the Buddhists extant, are 
the laws and sayings of Gauclama. They were re- 
duced to writing, in the Pali language, about ninety- 
five years after Christ. These books are called the 
Bedagat. Its cosmogony slightly varies in the dif- 
ferent books, and even the same book sometimes 
contradicts itself. For a very interesting sketch of 
the Buddhist's universe, we refer the reader to the 
first volume of " Malcom's Travels," by which work 



OF ADOJflKAM JTDSOX. 



43 



we are mainly guided in our statements of the char- 
acter and religion of the Burcnans : 

i; Of any supreme God, or any eternal, self-exist- 
ent "being. Buddhism affords no intimation ; nor of 
any creation, or providence. From the annihilation 
of one Buddh, till the development of another, there 
is literally no God. Intei*vening generations must 
worship his image, law, and priests, and for their 
rules of life keep the sayings of the last Buddh, 
viz. Gaudama. 

M Xot only has the universe and all its saldya 
systems existed from eternity, but also the souls of 
all the inhabitants, whether animals, men, or celes- 
tials. These souls have from eternity been transmi- 
grating from one body to another, rising or falling 
in the scale of existence and enjoyment, according 
to the degree of merit at each birth. This rise or 
fall is not ordered by any intelligent judge, but is 
decided by immutable fate. In passing through • 
these various forms of existence the amount of sor- 
row, endured by each soul, is incalculable. The 
Bedagat declares that the tears shecl by any one 
soul, in its various changes from eternity, are so 
nnmerous, that the ocean is but as a drop in com- 
parison ! Existence and sorrow are declared to be 
necessary concomitants; and therefore 4 the chief end 
of man ' is to finish this eternal round of changes, 
and be annihilated. 

u The great doctrines of this faith are five, viz : 
1st. The eternal existence of the universe, and all 



44 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



beings 2d. Metempsychosis. 3d. Elcban or anni- 
hilation. 4th. The appearance, at distant periods, 
of beings who obtain deification and subsequent 
annihilation. 5th. The obtaining of merit. Of the 
first four of these, enough has been already said. 
The last is more deserving of notice, embracing, as 
it does, the whole system of morals. 

" Merit consists in avoiding sins, and performing 
virtues ; and the degree of it is the sole hope of the 
Buddhist. The forgiveness of sins, and the receipt 
of favor through the merit of another, are doctrines 
unknown. That suffering can be in any way re- 
garded as a blessing, is to him absurd. 

" The sins which are to be avoided are described 
in a moral code, consisting of five principal and pos- 
itive laws : — 1st. Thou shalt not kill. 2d. Thou 
shalt not steal. 3d. Thou shalt not commit adul- 
tery. 4th. Thou shalt not lie. 5th. Thou shalt not 
drink any intoxicating liquor. These are explained 
• and branched out so as to include all sins of the 
same kind, under each head. The first of these 
laws is extended to all killing, even that of animals 
for food. The very religious will not kill vermin. 
War and capital punishments are considered forbid- 
den by the first law. 

" Sins are divided into three classes : 1st. Those 
of the body; such as killing, theft, fornication, &c. 
2d. Those of the tongue ; as falsehood, discord, harsh 
language, idle talk, &c. 3d. Those of the mind ; as 
pride, covetousness, envy, heretical thoughts, ador- 
ing false gods, &c. 



OF ADOXEKAM JUDSON, 



45 



"The sacred books portray strongly the evils of 
pride, anger, covetousness, and inordinate appetites. 
Men are urged to avoid excessive perfumes, orna- 
ments, laughter, vain joy, strong drink, smoking 
opium, wandering about the streets in the night, 
excessive fondness for amusements, frequenting bad 
company, and idleness. Those who aspire to Xic- 
ban are cautioned to abhor sorcery, not to credit 
dreams, nor be angry when abused, nor elated when 
approved, not to natter benefactors, nor to indulge 
in scorn or biting jests, and most carefully to avoid 
eaMndling strife. 

u The states of the mind are resolved into three 
classes: — 1st. "When we are pleased in the posses- 
sion of agreeable things. 2d. When we are grieved 
and distressed by evil things. 3d. When neither do 
good things gratify us, nor evil things distress. The 
last is the best state; and in it a man is rapidly 
preparing for Xicban. In this there is no small 
resemblance to the doctrine of the Stoics, and some 
approach to the christian doctrine of weanedness 
from the world. Some of their books abound in 
good comparisons; such as, that he who runs into 
sinful enjoyments is like a butterfly, who flutters 
round a candle till it falls in ; or one who, by licking 
honey from a knife, cuts his tongue with the edge. 
There is scarcely a prohibition of the Bedagat, which 
is not sanctioned by our holy Scriptures ; and the argu- 
ments appended to them are often just and forcible. 

"Merit is of three kinds: — 1st. Theela, or the 
observance of all the prohibitions and precepts, and 



46 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



all duties fairly deducible from them; such as be- 
neficence, gentleness, integrity, lenity, forbearance, 
condescension, veneration to parents, love to man- 
kind, &c. 2d. Dana, or giving alms and offerings. 
This includes feeding priests, building kyoungs, pa- 
godas, and zayats, placing bells at pagodas, making 
public roads, tanks, and wells, planting trees for 
shade or fruit, keeping pots of cool water by the 
wayside for the use of travelers, feeding criminals, 
birds, animals, &c. 3d. jRawana, or repeating pray- 
ers, and reading religious books. Of this last, there 
are three degrees or sorts ; the first consisting in 
merely reciting prayers, or reading thoughtlessly ; 
the second, and more meritorious, is praying or read- 
ing, with a mind attentive to the exercise ; the third, 
and most excellent, is performing these exercises 
with strong desires and awakened feelings. He who 
neglects to lay up merit, is compared to a man who 
sets out on a journey through an uninhabited coun- 
try, beset with wild beasts, and provides himself 
neither with food nor weapons. . 

" Alms-deeds are meritorious according to the ob- 
jects on which they are bestowed ; according to the 
following general scale: — 1st. Animals. 2d. Com- 
mon laborors, fishermen, &c. 3d. Merchants and 
the upper classes when in necessity. 4th. Priests. 
For alms of the first class, the rewards are long life, 
beauty, strength, knowledge, and prosperity, during 
a hundred transmigrations ; for those of the second 
class, the same, during a thousand transmigrations ; 
for the third, the same, during ten thousand ; for the 



:t adqntram ju: 



±7 



fourth, a vastly great number, but indefinite, being 
graduated according to the degree of sanctity the 
particular priests may possess. Alms given by a 
poor man are declared to be incomparably more 
meritorious than those given by the rich. So great 
merit is conferred by acts of Dana, that persons are 
distinguished in society by honorable appellations 
on this account. The most meritorious deed is to 
make an idol, and this in proportion to its size and 
value. 

i; In attaining Bairana, the third sort of merit, a 
prominent exercise, is the frequent repetition of the 
words 4 aneit-sa. doke-kka^ Ah-nah-ta? The first of 
these words implies our liability to outward injuries 
and evils ; the second, our exposure to mental suffer- 
ings ; the third, our entire inability to escape these 
evils. The repetition of this prayer or soliloquy is 
of far greater merit than even alms-giving. To keep 
some reckoning in this most important particular, 
the votaiy commonly uses a string of beads, and 
passes one through his fingers at each repetition. 

4; Many discourses, said to have been delivered by 
Gaudama. are given in the Bedagat. In these, the 
duties of parents, children, husbands, wives, teach- 
ers, scholars, masters, slaves, etc.. are drawn out and 
urged, in a manner which would do honor to any 
casuist." 



CHAPTER IY. 



Early Labors of Mr. Judson at Rangoon — Missionary Movements among Ameri- 
can Baptists — Mr. Judson's Literary Progress — Death of the First Bora. 

For more than two years after his arrival at Ran- 
goon, Mr. Jndson toiled, without knowing definitely 
under whose patronage he was at work ; but his pe- 
culiar and trying circumstances did not weaken his 
faith, abate the ardor of his hopes, or quench his love 
for the souls of the benighted millions, who were 
sinking into a hopeless grave. Hence, during the 
period above mentioned, he strove to lay the founda- 
tion of a work, which he could continue to advantage, 
were it the will of God that he should remain in 
Burmah. He acquainted himself with the condition 
of the country and its inhabitants, and made some 
progress in the acquisition of their language.* We 
say some progress, for it is exceedingly difficult to 

* The method of learning the language was as follows : The 
teacher, though an intelligent man, knew nothing of English, and 
would point to various objects, and pronounce their names in Burraan. 



AD ON lit AM JUDSOX. 



49 



learn, and more than twice two years were necessary 
for one to acquire it perfectly. After studying it two 
or three years, he wrote to Eev. Lucius Bolles, 

" I just now begin to see my way forward in this 
language, and hope that two or three years more will 
make it somewhat familiar; but I have met with 
difficulties that I had no idea of before I entered on 
the work. For a European or American to acquire 
a living oriental language, root and branch, and 
make it his own, is quite a different thing from his 
acquiring a cognate language of the west, or any of 
the dead languages, as they are studied in the schools. 
One circumstance may serve to illustrate this. I 
once had occasion to devote a few months to the 
study of French. I have now been above two years 
engaged in the Burman. If I were to choose be- 
tween a Burman and a French book, to be examined 
in, without previous study, I should, without the 
least hesitation, choose the French. When we take 
up a western language, the similarity in the charac- 
ters, in very many terms, in many modes of expres- 
sion, and in the general structure of the sentences, 
its being in fair print — a circumstance we hardly 
think of — and the assistance of grammars, diction- 
aries, and instructors, render the work comparatively 

Mr. and Mrs. Judson would repeat them after him, .and thus they 
slowly learned the vocabulary. Mr. Judson also studied the Pali, the 
court language of the Burmans, without a knowledge of which one 
could not be considered learned. Dr. Malcom says it is wholly a 
dead language. Mr. Judson subsequently ascertained that the time 
he devoted to it, was needlessly expended. 



50 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



easy. But when we take up a language spoken by 
a people on the other side of the earth, whose very 
thoughts run in channels diverse from ours, and 
whose modes of expression are consequently all new 
and uncouth; when we find the letters and words 
totally destitute of the least resemblance to any lan- 
guage we had ever met, and these words not fairly 
divided, and distinguished, as in western writing, by 
breaks, and points, and capitals, but run together in 
one continuous line, a sentence or paragraph seeming 
to the eye but one long word ; when, instead of clear 
characters on paper, we find only obscure scratches 
on dried palm leaves, strung together, and called a 
book; when we have no dictionary, and no inter- 
preter to explain a single word, and must get some- 
thing of the language, before we can avail ourselves 
of the assistance of a native teacher, — 

' Hoc opus, hie labor est' " 

Such was the state of things with Mr. Judson, 
when, on the 5th of September, 1815, three years 
and five days after he had written to Dr. Bolles, 
announcing his change of sentiments, he received 
the cheering intelligence that a Baptist Missionary 
Convention had been formed in the United States, 
and that himself and wife, together with Mr. Rice,* 
had been appointed missionaries. 

* Mr. Rice was directed, however, to remain in the United States, 
and travel, as he had been doing for nearly a year before his designa- 
tion to the work, in order to awaken among the Baptists a deeper 
interest on the subject of missions, and to aid in organizing associa- 
tions promotive of the cause. He never returned to the East. 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



51 



The letter addressed to Dr. Bolles, on the first of 
September, 1812, with other communications from 
Mr. Judson, reached Boston in February, 1813 ; and 
the intelligence, that two of the pioneer missionaries 
sent out by the Board of Commissioners, had become 
Baptists, and appealed to the churches of that denom- 
ination for support, spread with astonishing rapidity, 
and produced the most happy results. It was justly 
regarded as a providential call to American Baptists, 
to enlist in the great and glorious enterprise for car- 
rying the gospel to benighted nations, and the spirit 
of expanded benevolence took possession at once of 
thousands of hearts. The first demonstration of in- 
terest, in an associated capacity, was witnessed at the 
house of Dr. Baldwin, of Boston, where several 
clergymen convened immediately on the reception of 
Mr. Judson's letters, and formed — February 8th, 
1813 — "The Baptist Society for Propagating the 
Gospel in India and other Foreign Parts." 

Dr. Sharp was chosen secretary,* and instructed to 
write to the directors of the English Baptist society, 
communicating Mr. Judson's circumstances, and pro- 
posing that he should be allowed to connect himself 
with the Serampore mission, and at the same time be 
supported by American churches. This proposal 
was politely, and no doubt wisely, rejected. The 



* The charge of this Society was committed to twelve men : Thos. 
Baldwin, Daniel Sharp, Joseph Grafton, Heman Lincoln, E. Lincoln, 
James Loring, William Collier, Thomas Kendall, Amos Smith, Prince 
Snow, J. C. Ransford, and Charles Wheeler. Only two of this num- 
ber, Dr. Sharp and Hon. Heman Lincoln, survive. 



52 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



advice of Dr. Fuller was, that American Baptists 
should organize a society of their own. 

Other local missionary societies were formed in 
1813, and in the early part of 1811 ; and on the 18th 
of May, in the latter year, a convention was held in 
Philadelphia, when was formed " The General Mis- 
sionary Convention of the Baptist denomination in 
the United States of America for Foreign Missions." 

Thns Mr. Judson was made a leading agent, in the 
hand of God, in the formation of two national mis- 
sionary societies. The document which he prepared 
for the consideration of the meeting of Congrega- 
tional ministers in 1810, led to the formation of the 
Board of Commissioners, and his change of views on 
baptism, and his appeal to Baptist brethren in the 
United States, originated the Triennial Convention.* 

At the meeting of the Board of Managers, ap- 
pointed by this Convention, and held immediately 
on the adjournment of that body, several resolutions 
were passed, having reference to the appointment of 
missionaries, and among them the following, relative 
to Mr. Judson : 

" Resolved, That Rev. Adoniram Judson, Jr., now 
in India, be considered as a missionary, under the 
care and direction of this Board, of which he shall 
be informed without delay. That provision be made 
for the support of him and his family accordingly ; 

*This body retained most of its original features until 1846, when 
it took the name of the American Baptist Missionary Union, which 
now meets annually. 



OF ADONIRAM JTDSO^. 



53 



and that one thousand dollars be transmitted to him 
by the first safe opportunity. That the secretary of 
the Particular Baptist Society for Missions, in Eng- 
land, be informed of this transaction ; and that this 
Board has assumed the pledge given by the Boston 
Mission Society, to pay any bills which may be 
drawn on them, in consequence of advances they 
may have made in favor of Mr. and Mrs. Juclson. 

" Resolved, That our brother Judson be requested, 
for the present, to pursue his pious labors in such 
places as, in his judgment, may appear most promis- 
ing; and that he communicate his views of future 
permanent stations to this Board, as early as he 
conveniently can. 

"Resolved, That the proceedings of the late Con 
vention, and of this Board, be communicated to the 
Baptist Missionary Society in England, and to their 
missionaries at Serampore, assuring them that it is 
the desire of this Board to hold an affectionate inter- 
com's e with them, in the work of the Lord : that they 
will ever be grateful for any information which the 
extensive experience of their brethren may enable 
them to impart on the subject of fields for missionary 
action, &c. &c, and will derive joy from the reflec- 
tion that though, in these transactions, their respec- 
tive seats of council be remote from each other, then- 
hearts and aims are harmonious." 

The reception of the proceedings of the Triennial 
Convention, and its Board of Managers, gave Mr. 
Judson great encouragement. He received them 



54 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



during the absence of his wife at Madras, whither 
she had gone for the restoration of her health,* and 
at a time when he seemed most to need cheering 
intelligence. 'Nor was he insensible of the blessing 
which God had conferred, by illuminating the night 
which had so long hung over him. He thus expresses 
his joy and pious gratitude : 

" These accounts from my dear native land were so 
interesting as to banish from my mind all thoughts 
of study. This general movement among the Bap- 
tist churches in America is particularly encouraging, 
as it affords an additional indication of God's merci- 
ful designs in favor of the poor heathen. It unites 
with all the Bible societies in Europe and America, 
during the last twenty years, in furnishing abundant 
reason to hope that the dreadful darkness which has 
so long enveloped the earth is about to flee away 
before the rising sun. Do not the successes which 
have crowned some missionary exertions seem like 
the dawn of morning on the east? O! that this 
region of Egyptian darkness may ere long participate 
in the vivifying beams of light. 

" None but one who has had the experience, can 
tell what feelings comfort the heart of a solitary mis- 
sionary, when, though all the scenes around him 
present no friend, he remembers, and has proof, that 
there are spots on this wide earth, where christian 
brethren feel that his cause is their own, and pray to 



* She embarked for Madras in January, 1815, and returned tlie fol- 
lowing April, with her health completely restored. 



OF ADOXIEA1I JUDSON. 



55 



the same God and Saviour for his welfare and success. 
Thanks be to God, not only for 4 rivers of endless 
joys above,' but for c rills of comfort here below.' " 

The following letter, written at this period, explains 
itself: 

Rangoon, Jan. 18, 1816. 
Dear Brother Ward, — I have finished the Ubid- 
han, to my great joy. But I know but little yet 
about the grammar and internal structure of the Pali. 
My object has been words simply, without much 
regard to their terminations. My collection amounts 
to four thousand three hundred and twenty. And 
here I must let the matter rest for the present, being 
grieved at having spent so much time already on a 
w^ork not directly Burman. I have heard of a new 
Pali grammar, lately compiled at Ava, said to be 
greatly superior to those now in use ; and have taken 
measures to secure a copy. If I should succeed, I 
shall probably give a little more attention to the 
language. 

I am now beginning to translate a little. I am 
extremely anxious to get some parts of Scripture into 
an intelligible state, fit to be read to Burmans that I 
meet with. I have nothing yet that I can venture to 
use. The Portuguese missionaries have left a version 
of some extracts of Scripture, not very badly execut- 
ed, in regard to language, but full of Romish errors. 
This, however, will afford me some assistance. 
I remain, &c., 

A. Judson. 



56 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



On the 4th of May, 1816, Mr, Juclson lost his first- 
born, a boy about eight months old. While it is 
hard for parents to part with children, under any 
circumstances, it was peculiarly trying for these pio- 
neer missionaries to give up their only child. Re- 
mote from all christian society, their "little Roger 
Williams " was to them like a bright and newly-risen 
star, the sole orb in their social sky, twinkling amid 
the gloom of moral darkness that surrounded them, 
and irradiating their solitary christian dwelling. 
When the light was quenched, a brief night of sor- 
row gathered over them. But amid the darkness, 
however dun, they saw the hand of the Smiter, kissed 
the rod, and without a murmur said, " Thy will be 
done." Such is the power of faith, which 

" lights us through the dark to Deity ; " 

such the beauty of christian resignation. Thus blest, 
these lone and smitten pilgrims could sing, in the 
land of pagodas, and false and helpless gods, 

Let us be patient ! these severe afflictions 

Not from the ground arise, 
But often times celestial benedictions 

Assume this dark disguise. 

We see but dimly through the mists and vapors ; 

Amid these earthly damps, — 
What seems to us but dim, funereal tapers, 

May be heaven's distant lamps. 

There is no Death ! what seems so, is transition ; 

This life of mortal breath 
Is but a suburb of the life elysian, 

Whose portal we call Death. 



OF ADOXIEAM JUDSOX. 



And though at times, impetuous with emotion 

And anguish long suppressed, 
The swelling heart heaves, moaning like the ocean, 

That cannot be at rest ; 

"We will be patient, and assuage the feeling 

"We cannot wholly stay ; 
By silence sanctifying, not concealing, 

The grief that must haTe way. — Longfellow 



3* 



CHAPTEE V. 



Mr. Judson joined by Mr. Hough — Printing in the Burman Language — First 
Inquirers after Truth — 'Mr. Judson sails for Chittagong — Driven out of his 
Course and Delayed — Mr. Hough goes to Bengal — Mr. Judson returns to 
Rangoon — Heroic conduct of Mrs. Judson. 

In the early part of 1816, though not fully master 
of the Burman language, Mr. Judson could write it 
with tolerable ease, and had ventured to prepare a 
tract, entitled "Summary of Christian Doctrines." 
About this time, his eyes became so much affected by 
his unremitted mental labor, that he could not read, 
though he was able to progress a little on a Burman 
grammar, which he was preparing. In the midst of 
his affliction and despondency, while greatly needing 
additional help, his heart was gladdened by the tid- 
ings, that Eev. George II. Hough, and wife, and Mrs. 
Charlotte White,* who had been appointed by the 
American Board of Managers, as missionaries to 
Burmah, had reached Calcutta. The news came 
while he was waiting for a vessel to sail, in which he 
had engaged a passage to Bengal, for the improve- 
ment of his health. This voyage he now abandoned, 



* Mrs. White was married soon after, and remained at Calcutta. 



ADONIEAM _ JTJDSOK. 



50 



and soon began to amend. He had commenced nego- 
tiations with the English brethren at Serampore, to 
print his tract and some other works which were 
being prepared, when he ascertained that Mr. Hough, 
who had been bred a printer, was on the way. The 
latter was considerably delayed at Calcutta; and 
while there, the Baptist missionaries presented the 
Burman mission with a press, and font of Bur- 
man types, together with the apparatus necessary for 
printing. The press arrived at Eangoon about the 
first of August. On the sixth of the same month, 
Mr. Jndson wrote to Dr. Baldwin, giving an account 
of his labors the previous half year, his sickness, the 
progress and prospects of the mission, and his wishes 
and aspirations in regard to it. We subjoin a few 
paragraphs : 

"I expect it will not be long before I shall be 
ordered up to Ava. The press, also, which has just 
arrived from Bengal, will not probably be allowed to 
stop long in Eangoon. This will open a wide field, 
and make it necessary to support two stations. I beg, 
therefore, that the Board will endeavor to send out 
one or two men with brother Rice, or as soon after as 
possible. The sooner they are on the ground, learn- 
ing the language, the sooner they will be fit for ser- 
vice. I have never before thought it prudent to write 
for more men, in addition to those I knew were des- 
tined to the place ; but some favorable prospects 
lately begin to open; and the more I become ac- 
quainted with the state of things, the less reason I 



60 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



have to fear that the government of the country wh% 
at present, oppose the work. 

" We know not the designs of God ? in regard to 
this country ; but I cannot but have raised expecta- 
tions. It is true, we may have to labor and wait 
many years before the blessing conies ; but we see 
what God is doing in other heathen lands, after 
trying the faith and sincerity of his servants some 
fifteen or twenty years. Look at Otaheite* Bengal,, 
and Africa, And is Burmah to remain a solitary 
instance of the inefficacy of prayer, of the forgetful- 
ness of a merciful and faithful God % Is it nothing, 
that an attempt is begun to be made; that, in one 
instance, the language is considerably acquired ; that 
a tract is ready for publication, which is intelligible 
and perspicuous, and will give^ the Burmans their 
first ideas of a Saviour and the way of salvation ; 
that a press and types have now arrived, and a printer 
is on the way ; that a grammar is finished, to facili- 
tate the studies of others, and a dictionary of the 
language is in a very forward state; and that the 
way is now prepared, as soon as health permits, to 
proceed slowly in the translation of the New Testa- 
ment ? Is it nothing that, just at this time, the mon- 
arch of the country has taken a violent hate to the 
priests of his own religion, and is endeavoring with 
all his power, to extirpate the whole order ; at the 
same time professing to be an inquirer after the true 
religion ? Is all this to be set down a mere cypher ? 
It is true that we may desire much more. But let 
us use what we have, and God will give us more. 



OF ADONIEAM JTDSOST. 



61 



However, men and money mnst be forthcoming. 
Work cannot be done without men ; and men cannot 
work without bread ; nor can we expect the ravens 
to feed them in ordinary cases. 

"I do not say, several hundred missionaries are 
needed here. This, though true, would be idle talk. 
My request, I think, is modest. Five men, allowing 
two or three to each of the stations, is the smallest 
munber that will possibly answer." 

In a joint communication, addressed to the corres- 
ponding secretaiy, on the 17th of November, 1816, 
Messrs. Judson and Hough say : 

" We know not how long the press will be per- 
mitted to remain in Rangoon ; we do not, however, 
deprecate its removal to Ava. Such a measure 
would, doubtless, tend to the furtherance of the 
cause, and to the introduction of religion into the 
very heart of the empire, where Satan's seat is. But 
in this case, more men and more money would be 
imperiously demanded ; and we trust that the pat- 
ronage of the Board will not fail us in these necessa- 
ry points. We desire humbly to repeat to the Board 
what the first missionaries from the Baptist society 
in England said to their friends, when on the point 
of embarkation in the great work which seems 
destined to illume western India with the light of 
the gospel. 'We are,' said they, 'like men going 
clown into a deep well ; you stand at the top, and 
hold the ropes. Do not let us fall.' Hold us up, 



62 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



brethren and fathers ; and, if health and life be 
spared us, we hope, through the grace of God, to see 
eastern India, also, beginning to participate in the 
same glorious light. Many years may intervene, in 
the latter, as well as the former case ; many difficul- 
ties and disappointments may try your faith and 
ours. But let patience have her perfect work ; let 
us not be weary of well doing ; for in due season we 
shall reap, if we faint not." 

Mr. Hough reached Rangoon on the 15th of Oc- 
tober, and, with unspeakable joy, Mr. Judson wel- 
comed a fellow laborer. With mountains of labor 
before them, he and his companion had stood alone 
in the Bur man empire more than three years , and, 
unapplauded by mortal lips, had toiled on in their 
painful isolation, with the musical whispers of an 
approving conscience to cheer them, and the prom- 
ises of God to encourage. 

Soon after the arrival of the printer whom God 
had sent to work the donated press, the tract al- 
ready mentioned, together with a catechism which 
Mr. Judson had also prepared, was printed; and 
the Gospel of Matthew was shortly after put to press. 
Thus Mr. Judson was at length enabled to gratify 
the curiosity of the cunning Bur mans, who had 
repeatedly inquired for the sacred books of the new 
religion. Although, as yet, no additions had been 
made to the church which the, missionaries had 
formed among themselves, the seed was being scat- 
tered abroad, and there were promising indications 



OF ADONIRAM JTJDSON. 



63 



that it was taking root in the hearts on which it had 
fallen. 

In a letter addressed to the corresponding secre- 
tary of the Board of Managers, March 7th, 1817, 
Mr. Judson writes, " I have this day been visited 
by the first inquirer after religion, that I have 
seen in Burmah. For although in the com-s e of the 
last two years I have preached the gospel to many, 
and though some have visited me several times, 
and conversed on the subject of religion; yet I have 
never had much reason to believe that their visits 
originated in a spirit of sincere inquiry. Conversa- 
tions on religion have always been of my propos- 
ing ; and though I have sometimes been encouraged 
to hope that truth had made some impression, never, 
until to-day, have I met with one who was fairly 
entitled to the epithet of inquirer. 

" As I was sitting with my teacher, as usual, a 
Burnian of respectable appearance, and followed by 
a servant, came up the steps, and sat down by me. 
I asked him the usual question, where he came from : 
to which he gave me no explicit reply ; and I began 
to suspect that he had come from the government 
house, to enforce a trifling request, which in the 
morning we had declined. He soon, however, un- 
deceived and astonished me, by asking, 1 How long 
a time will it take me to learn the religion of Jesus ? ' 
I replied that such a question could not be answered. 
If God gave light and wisdom, the religion of Jesus 
was soon learned; but without God, a man might 
study all his life long, and make no proficiency. But 



64: 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



how, continued I, came you to know any thing of 
Jesus ? Have you been here before ? ' No.' Have 
you seen any writings concerning Jesus % £ I have 
seen two little books.' Who is Jesus ? 4 He is the 
Son of God, who, pitying creatures, came into this 
world, and suffered death in their stead.' "Who is 
God ? ' He is a Being without beginning or end, 
who is not subject to old age or death, but always 
is.' I can not tell how I felt at this moment. This 
was the first acknowledgment of an eternal God, 
that I had ever heard from the lips of a Burman. 
I handed him a tract and catechism, both of which 
he instantly recognized, and read here and there, 
making occasional remarks to his follower, such as, 
' This is the true God — this is the right way,' &c. 
I now tried to tell him some things about God and 
Christ, and himself; but he did not listen with much 
attention, and seemed anxious only to get another 
book. I had already told him two or three times 
that. I had finished no other book ; but, that in two 
or three months, I would give him a larger one, which 
I was now daily employed in translating. ' But,' re- 
plied he, 4 have you not a little of that book done, 
which you will graciously give me now ? ' And I, 
beginning to think that God's time was better than 
man's, folded and gave him the first two half sheets, 
which contain the first five chapters of Matthew ; on 
which he instantly rose, as if his business was all 
done; and having received an invitation to come 
again, took leave. Throughout his short stay, he 
appeared different from any Burman I have met 



OF ADONIEAif JTDSOX. 



G5 



with. He asked no questions about customs and 
manners, with which the Bunnans tease us exceed- 
ingly. He had no curiosity, and no desire for any 
thing, but c more of this sort of writing.' " 

Two or three weeks after this inquirer had depart- 
ed, Mr. Judson learned, through an acquaintance, 
that he was reading, with great avidity, the books 
he had accepted, and showing them to all who waited 
on him. This inquirer did not call at the mission- 
house again until January, 1818, almost a year after 
his first visit. Mr. Judson was then absent. The 
long interval was occasioned by his being appointed 
governor of a cluster of villages on the Syrian river, 
in the province of Pegu. 

Dming the summer of 1817, inquirers began to 
multiply. It was not an uncommon thing to see one 
or more at the mission-house ; but they usually came 
separately, or in groups of two or three, who were 
on terms of intimacy. They seemed to manifest an 
imwillingness to be seen there by strangers, fearing, 
perhaps, that they should be reported to the civil 
authorities, and incur their displeasure. 

In December, 1817, Mr. Judson embarked for 
Chittagong, in Arracan, ten days' sail ironi Ran- 
goon ; the objects of his visit being to improve his 
health, and avail himself of the literary services of 
some Arracanese converts. They spoke the Burman 
language, and if - one of them could be persuaded to 
accompany him to Bangoon, and tarry there, he 
thought he could acquire the language much more 



06 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



rapidly. He expected to return in three months; 
but contrary winds made the vessel unmanageable, 
changed her course toward Madras, which she was 
unable to reach, and he was landed three hundred 
miles from that city. Thither he was obliged to 
travel by land, and was unable to sail for Rangoon 
until the 20th of July. He was absent eight months. 
Some of his hardships, perplexities, trials, and anx- 
ieties, are indicated in a letter written at Madras, on 
the 28th of May, 1818, and addressed to the corres- 
ponding secretary: 

* * * "Finally we did reach Masulipatam, 
and, as there was no prospect, that season, of reach- 
ing Madras by sea, the only port on the coast where 
I could hope to find a vessel bound to Rangoon, 
I was under the necessity of taking a journey by 
land — distance about three hundred miles. I, ac- 
cordingly, hired a palanquin and bearers, and arrived 
here on the 8th of April. * * * Here I have 
remained ever since, under very trying circumstances. 
Have scarcely heard from Rangoon, since I left, or 
been able to transmit any intelligence thither, by a 
conveyance to be depended on. The weakness of 
my eyes prevents my application to study, or attempt 
at any exertion. I am making no progress in mis- 
sionary work; I am distressed by the appalling 
recollection of the various business which was press- 
ing me at Rangoon, and made me reluctant to leave 
home for the shortest time. Eow, I have been de- 
tained twice as long as I anticipated, and have, 



OF ABOHTBAM JTDS02T. 



or 



withal, wholly failed in my undertaking. Where, 
my rebellious heart is ready to cry, where is the 
wisdom of all this ? But it is wise, though blindness 
cannot apprehend. It is best, though unbelief is 
disposed to murmur. Be still, my soul, and know 
that he is God." 

On his return, he found the mission in a mournful 
condition. About three months after he left for 
Chittagong, Mr. Hough was summoned to appear at 
the court-house, on an order which appeared to have 
reference to some Portuguese priests, who had 
been banished by the Mng. After giving assurance 
that he was not one of them, he was meanly detained 
by the officers, who vainly hoped, thereby, to extort 
ransom money. He was finally released, through 
the bold and strenuous exertions of Mrs. Judson, 
who persuaded her teacher to draw up a petition, 
which she presented to the viceroy. 

Just before this arrest, news came from Chitta- 
gong, that neither Mr. Judson nor the vessel in 
which he sailed, had reached that port: and, soon 
after the viceroy's order to have Mr. Hough released 
was executed, intelligence was received that a war 
was expected, immediately, between the English and 
Barman governments. The cholera was ravins: at 
Rangoon, which caused additional alarm, and there 
seemed but little inducement, for foreigners at least, 
to remain. The poor natives were rapidly thinning 
before the awful malady; English traders were clos- 
ing business, and hurrying out of the country ; and 



68 



ADONIRAM JUDSON. 



all but one ship'had, at length, left the river. That 
one was about to sail ; and Mr. and Mrs. Hough 
readily decided to nee in her to Bengal, with the 
printing press. They also, after much entreaty, 
persuaded Mrs. Judson to go on board. The ship 
sailed on the 5th of July, but met with several days' 
detention, before reaching the mouth of the river. 
"While delayed, Mrs. Judson, led by that " instinct 
which seems to guide the noblest natures in great 
emergencies," decided to return to Eangoon, and 
remain alone in the mission-house, until she should 
welcome her husband, or ascertain his doom. It 
was a bold decision, difficult to be paralleled in 
the annals of female courage; nor was it less fortu- 
nate than heroic. Her constancy was soon rewarded, 
for it was but a few days before Mr. Judson returned. 



CHAPTEE VI. 



Appointment of Messrs. Colman and Wheelock — Erection of a Zayat — Early 
Labors thereat — Conversion and Baptism of Moung Nau — Death of the 
King — Revision of the First Tract — Death of Mr. Wheelock. 

At the first triennial meeting of the Convention, 
held in May, 1817, Messrs. James Colman and 
Edward W. Wheelock, both residents of Boston, 
offered themselves as missionaries. They were ac- 
cepted by the Board; sailed in the following No- 
vember; arrived at Calcutta in April, 1818; and, 
after four months' delay, reembarked, and reached 
Rangoon on the 19th of September. Their arrival 
was opportune, and gave occasion for much rejoicing 
to Mr. Juclson. He had toiled alone, since his return 
from Chittagong, with all the disadvantages attendant 
on the removal of the printing press to Bengal. But, 
however somber the night that had hung over the 
mission, he was full of that hope, which "tints to- 
morrow with prophetic ray," and hence had toiled 
on, patiently and diligently, looking to God to 



70 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



bring, in his own good time, the effulgence of 
returning day.' 

Messrs. Colman and "Wheelock had hardly com- 
menced their studies, before their health began to 
fail ; which circumstance greatly retarded their pro- 
gress. The former declined rapidly, and, as will be 
seen, was never permitted to do much for the salva- 
tion of those for whom he had made an offering of 
his life. 

Meanwhile, Mr. Judson had become such a Bur- 
man linguist, as to be able to talk with considerable 
ease and fluency; and he now began to prosecute 
the work preliminary to public preaching. A zayat, 
a building to answer the purpose of a chapel,* was 
commenced. It was small, and divided into three 
parts. The first division opened to the road, front- 
ing which was no partition ; nor had it either win- 
dows or doors. The second division was a large 
room, containing four doors and four windows open- 
ing in opposite directions. The third was merely 
an entry, opening into the garden, and leading to 
the mission-house. The first division was of bam- 
boo and thatch; the second of boards. Mr. Jud- 
son usually occupied the former; Mrs. Judson the 
latter. 



* Zayats, or caravansaries, sometimes serve the triple purpose of 
church, hotel and town-house. They do not, however, meet the re- 
quirements of the stranger or traveler, as a hotel, except for shelter. 
Other wants are supplied at the bazaar, or by neighboring families. 
These buildings are found in all Burman villages, and not unfre- 
quently between them. 



OF ADCOTEA3I JUDSOK". 



n 



This building, so important to the mission, and 
the erection of which, on a street lined with pa- 
godas, angels must Lave watched with interest, was 
completed on the 24th of April, 1819. The next 
morning, which was the Sabbath, Mr. Judson seated 
himself in the open porch, under some solemn im- 
pression, as he has informed the world, "of the 
great responsibility attached to my new mode of 
life. 5 ' 

In the afternoon of the same day, the missionaries 
collected at the zayat ; a number came in from the 
road, sufficient to make an audience of about twenty- 
live persons, and religious services were held. It is 
interesting to contemplate this small beginning in 
the "new mode" of prosecuting a great work. It 
was the first Sabbath on which public services were 
held, by American missionaries, in the Burman em- 
pire ; and, although but few came to -the solemn feast, 
and none but the missionaries could participate in its 
joys, or appreciate its weighty import, the little band 
of disciples, no doubt, looked forward with the eye 
of faith to the period when Burman voices would 
join theirs in songs of praise, and Burman hearts 
respond to their fervent prayers. 

During the first week after the opening of the 
zayat, several inquirers called, who seemed to be 
earnest seekers after the truth; and one of them, 
named Moung Nau, who came first on the 30th of 
April, was afterward converted. lie was the first 
Burman who embraced the new religion. "When he 
first visited the zayat, he called daily for a short 



72 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



time, and Ms convictions of sin seemed to deepen 
rapidly. On the 5th of May, Mr. Jnclson began, as 
he thought, to discover signs of grace in his heart, 
and wrote in his journal as follows : "It seems al- 
most too much to believe, that God has begun to 
manifest his grace to the Burmans ; but this day I 
could not resist the delightful conviction, that this 
is really the case. Praise and glory be to his name 
forevermore. Amen." 

The next day Mr. Judson made the following 
record : " Moung Nau was again with me a great 
part of the day. He appears to be slowly growing 
in religious knowledge, and manifests a teachable, 
humble spirit, ready to believe all that Christ has 
said, and obey all that he has commanded. 

" He is thirty-five years old, no family, middling 
abilities, quite poor, obliged to work for his living, 
and therefore his coming day after day to hear the 
truth, affords stronger evidence that it has taken 
hold of his mind. May the Lord graciously lead 
his dark mind into all the truth, and cause him to' 
cleave inviolably to the blessed Saviour." 

For months, inquirers continued to multiply, and 
Moung Nan, who was often with Mr. Judson, ren- 
dered him important assistance in explaining things 
to new comers. Meanwhile, he himself seemed rap- 
idly advancing in christian knowledge and divine 
grace. The following paper, written of his own 
accord, was read by the missionaries, after partaking 



OF ADOXIEAM JUDSON. 



73 



of the Lord's supper, in the evening of the sixth 
of June: 

"I, ]VToiing Xau, the constant recipient of your 
excellent favor, approach your feet. "Whereas, my 
lords three have come to the country of Burmah, 
not for the purpose of trade, but to preach the reli- 
gion of Jesus Christ, the Son of the eternal God, I, 
having heard and understood, am with a joyful mind 
filled with love. 

"I believe that the Divine Son, Jesus Christ, suf- 
fered death in the place of men, to atone for their 
sins. Like a heavy laden man, I feel my sins are 
very many. The punishment of my sins I deserve, 
to suffer. Since it is so, do you, sirs, consider that 
I, taking refuge in the merits of the Lord . Jesus 
Christ, and receiving baptism, in order to become 
his disciple, shall dwell one with yourselves, a band 
of brothers, in the happiness of heaven, and there- 
fore grant me the ordinance of baptism. It is 
chrough the grace of Jesus Christ, that you, sirs, 
have come by ship from one country and continent 
to another, and that we have met together. I pray 
my lords three, that a suitable day may be ap- 
pointed, and that I may receive the ordinance of 
baptism. 

"Moreover, as it is only since I have met with 
you, sirs, that I have known about the eternal God, 
I venture to pray that you will still unfold to me the 
religion of God, that my old disposition may be 
destroyed, and my new disposition improved." 



74 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



After reading this document, the missionaries 
voted to receive its author into the church, and he 
was baptized on the 27th of the same month. The 
exercises on the occasion, and Mr. Judson's feelings, 
are thus briefly and feelingly recorded by his own 
pen: 

" There were several strangers present at worship. 
After the usual course, I called Moung Nau before 
me, read and commented on an appropriate por- 
tion of Scripture, asked him several questions con- 
cerning his faith, hope, and love, and made the 
baptismal prayer, having concluded to have all the 
preparatory exercises done in the zayat. We then 
proceeded to a large pond in the vicinity, the bank 
of which is graced with an enormous image of Gau- 
dama, and there administered baptism to the first 
Burman convert. O, may it prove the beginning of 
a series of baptisms in the Burman empire, which 
shall continue in uninterrupted succession to the end 
of time! " 

It is said, that when Dr. Carey led the first Hin- 
doo convert to Christianity into the Ganges, Mr. 
Ward exclaimed, with transport, "The chain of caste 
is broken, and who shall be able to mend it ? " while 
another missionary eloquently apostrophized as fol- 
lows: "Ye gods of stone and clay, did ye not 
tremble when, in the name of the Father, Son, and 
Holy Ghost, one of your votaries shook you as dust 
from his feet?" And, when Mr. Judson buried 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSOST. 



75 



Monng !N"au in baptism, scenes as sublime as the 
crumbling of clay-built gods, doubtless passed be- 
fore bis eye. Glancing forward through the vista 
of coming years, he beheld " a series of baptisms in 
the Burman empire," which thickened and widened 
as it progressed, to be interrupted only with the 
interruption and cessation of time. 

On the 4th of July, 1819, Mr. Juclson and his 
associates celebrated the Lord's -sufferings and death, 
and had the happiness of communing, for the first 
time, with a converted Burman. On that memora- 
ble occasion, Mr. Judson enjoyed a privilege he had 
long desired and anxiously looked for, that of ad- 
ministering the Lord's supper in two languages. 

"While there is joy in heaven over one repentant 
sinner, so, in some instances, there is great joy on 
earth, on account of a single conversion. Such was 
the case when Krishno embraced the truth — the 
Hindoo for whose conversion Dr. Thomas labored, at 
Bengal, seventeen years ; such was emphatically the 
case, when Moung JSTau made a profession of faith. 
The joy over the latter's conversion, was not limited 
to the few missionaries who witnessed his baptism, 
and first communed with him at the Lord's table ; it 
was not limited to the East; when the news of it 
reached America, a thrill of joy ran through every 
heart that had breathed its desires at a throne of 
grace for the success of missions. We once heard a 
gentleman remark, that when the pastor of a Baptist 
church in the eastern part of New Hampshire, read 
to his congregation, in a conference meeting, the 



70 



THE MISSIONARY LAEOES 



account of this heathen's conversion, an aged and very 
pious deacon, whose contributions had been liberally 
made for missions, sprang upon his feet and ex- 
claimed, " I 've a brother in Burmah ! I 've a brother 
in Burmah ! " and, as he repeated these words, he 
pressed his hands to his face, and the tears . oozed 
through his fingers. This anecdote beautifully illus- 
trates the principle, that one's happiness, in the suc- 
cess of an enterprise, depends upon the interest he 
takes in it, and the freeness with which he con- 
tributes to carry it forward. "The truly generous" 
is not only the " truly wise," as Home asserts, but the 
truly happy. 

During the months of May and June, while the 
missionaries had been cheered and encouraged by 
the visits of inquirers, they were also visited, repeat- 
edly, by a more annoying class, namely, tax-gatherers : 
their demands it was not deemed proper to dispute, 
though they were extremely vexatious. 

In the latter month, the missionaries learned that 
the king had "gone up to amuse himself in the 
celestial regions;" or, in truer English, had gone 
down to an idolater's hopeless grave. He was 
succeeded by his grandson — mentioned in a pre- 
vious chapter — who put one uncle to death, and 
imprisoned another, in order to clear the way to the 
throne. 

Aside from attending to the inquiries of daily new 
comers at the zayat, Mr. Judson revised his first 
tract, in the month of July, and enlarged it by add- 
ing several prayers and some other matter. The 



OF ABQNIEAM JTDSON. 



TT 



new edition was called, a " View of the Christian 
Religion, in four parts — Historical, Practical, Pre- 
ceptive, and Devotional." It was sent to Seram- 
pore, where Mr. Hough printed an edition of five 
thousand copies, which was five times the number 
of the original edition. 

In August, 1819, the mission met with its first 
loss of laborers. On the Tth of that month, Mr. 
"WTieelock, whose health, as we have before stated, 
began to decline soon after his arrival at Rangoon, 
embarked for Bengal, in a very low state. On the 
voyage he was deprived of reason by a violent fever; 
and in this state, on the 20th, plunged into the sea, 
and disappeared, there to await its giving up of the 
dead. He died at the early age of twenty-three. 
One of the first to respond to the appeal of the 
Burman apostle for assistant reapers, he was the 
first to respond to the call of Providence, to lay his 
sickle aside ; and his name is written at the head 
of a martyr-roll, which embraces many of the true 
heroes of the age, whose memory will be sacred to 
the family of Christ in all coming time. 

Mrs. TTheelock, who was with her husband when 
he perished, proceeded to Bengal, where she was 
subsequently married to Mr. Jones, of Calcutta. 
Thus the station at Eangoon was early deprived of 
two of its missionaries. 



CHAPTEE YII. 



New Inquirers, with a Description of one of Them — More Baptisms — Signs of 
Persecution — Mr. Judson decides to visit the King. 

Among the persons who frequented the zayat in 
the autumn of 1819, were Moung Thah-lah, Moung 
Byaa, and Monng Shwa-Gnong. The last was a 
teacher, a man of learning, and a skeptic. As he 
will be frequently mentioned hereafter, we transcribe 
some portions of Mr. Judson's journal, relating to 
his visits, character, &c. He first came to the zayat 
on the 26th of August : 

"August 27. The teacher Moung Shwa-Gnong 
came again, and stayed from noon till quite dark. 
We conversed incessantly the whole time ; but I fear 
that no real impression is made on his proud, skepti- 
cal heart. He, however, promised to pray to the 
eternal God, through Jesus Christ, and appeared at 
times to be in deep thought. He is a man of very 
superior argumentative powers. His conversation 
would probably shake the faith of many." 



ADONIRAM JUDSON. 



79 



ci September 3. A great crowd of company through 
the whole clay ; .the teacher, Moung Shwa-Gnong, 
from ten o'clock till quite dark, with several of his 
adherents. He is a complete Proteus in religion, and 
I never know where to find him*. We went over a 
vast deal of ground, and ended where we began, in 
apparent incredulity. 

" After he was gone, Moung Ing, who has been 
listening all day, followed me home to the house, 
being invited to stay with Moung Nau through the 
' night. We conversed all the evening, and his expres- 
sions have satisfied us all, that he is one of God's 
chosen people. His exercises have been of a much 
stronger character than those of the others, and he 
expresses himself in the most decided manner. He 
desires to become a disciple in profession, as well as 
heart, and declares his readiness to suffer persecution 
and death for the love of Christ. When I stated the 
danger to which he was exposing himself, and asked 
him whether he loved Christ better than his own life, 
he replied, very deliberately and solemnly, 4 When I 
meditate on this religion, I know not what it is to 
love my own life.' Thus the poor fisherman, Moung 
Ing, is taken, while the learned teacher, Moung 
Shwa-Gnong, is left." 

" September 11. Moung Shwa-Gnong has been 
with me all day. It appears that he accidentally 
obtained the idea of an eternal Being, about eight 
years ago ; and it has been floating about in his mind 
and disturbing his Buddhist ideas ever since. When 



80 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



he heard of us, which was through one of his adher- 
ents, to whom I had given a tract, this idea received 
considerable confirmation ; and to-day he has fully 
admitted the truth of this first grand principle. The 
latter part of the day, we were chiefly employed in 
discussing the possibility and necessity of a divine 
revelation, and the evidence which proves that the 
writings of the apostles of Jesus contain that revela- 
tion ; and I think I may say, that he is half inclined 
to admit all this. He is certainly a most interesting 
case. The way seems to be prepared in his mind, for 
the special operation of divine grace. Come, Holy 
Spirit, heavenly Dove ! 

" His conversion seems peculiarly desirable, on ac- 
count of his superior talents and extensive acquain- 
tance with Burman and Pali literature, He is the 
most powerful reasoner I have yet met with in this 
country, excepting my old teacher, Oo Oungmen, 
(now dead,) and he is not at all inferior to him." 

In the evening of October 23d, Moung Thah-lah 
and Moung Byaa presented Mr. Judson a paper, con- 
taining their profession of faith in Christ, and a 
request to be privately baptized. The peculiarity of 
this request was doubtless owing to fears of persecu- 
tion and death, a renunciation of Buddhism forfeiting 
life. 

Moung Shwa-Gnong began about this time to be 
troubled in the same way. After an absence of three 
weeks, he called on Mr. Judson October 29th, but 
appeared less eager to investigate religious truth, and 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



81 



was quite anxious to curtail his visit. Some one, it 
seems, had mentioned him to the viceroy as an aban- 
doner of Buddhism, and the informant was ordered 
to make further inquiries about him. Learning this 
fact, Moung Shwa-Gnong became alarmed, and went 
to the Mangen teacher, and doubtless made apologies 
as well as explanations. 

On the 6th of November, Moung Thah-lah and 
Moung Byaa again petitioned for baptism. Their 
first request had been deferred, not because the mis- 
sionaries could gain no evidence that they possessed 
divine grace, but because their love for Christ had 
not become strong enough to overcome the fears of 
martyrdom. They had been recommended to wait, 
and prayerfully reconsider the matter. In their sec- 
ond petition, they requested to be baptized at sunset, 
in as secluded a place as was convenient. " "We 
spent some horns," writes Mr. Judson, "in again dis- 
cussing the subject with them, and with one another. 
We felt satisfied that they were humble disciples of 
Jesus, and were desirous of receiving this ordinance, 
purely out of regard to his command, and their own 
spiritual welfare ; we felt, that we were all equally 
exposed to danger, and needed a spirit of mutual 
candor, and forbearance, and sympathy; we were 
convinced that they were influenced rather by desires 
of avoiding unnecessary exposure, than by that sinful 
fear, which would plunge them into apostasy in 
the hour of trial ; and when they assured us, that, 
if actually brought before government, they could 
not think of denying their Saviour, we could not 
4* 



82 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



conscientiously refuse their request, and therefore 
agreed to have them baptized to-morrow at sunset." 

The scene which the twilight of the next day — 
the Sabbath — witnessed, was one of uncommon 
interest, and is briefly described by Mr. Judson, in a 
strain of rare beauty. The little company of wor- 
shipers at the zayat had dispersed, when, about half 
an hour before sunset, the two candidates returned, 
accompanied by three or four of their friends. A 
short prayer was offered, and the little band resorted 
to the spot consecrated by the baptism of Moung 
!Nau. " The sun was not allowed to look upon the 
humble, timid profession. No wondering crowd 
crowned the overshadowing hill. E"o hymn of praise 
expressed the exultant feelings of joyous hearts. 
Stillness and solemnity pervaded the scene. "We 
felt, on the banks of the water, as a little, feeble, soli- 
tary band. But, perhaps, some hovering angels took 
note of the event, with more interest than they wit- 
nessed the late coronation; perhaps Jesus looked 
down on us, pitied and forgave our weaknesses, and 
marked us for his own ; perhaps, if we deny Him not, 
He will acknowledge us another day, more publicly 
than we venture, at present, to acknowledge Him." 

In the evening of the same day, the missionaries 
sat down at the table of the Lord with the newly 
baptized converts, and enjoyed the gracious presence 
of their Saviour. Three days after, in the evening, 
when Mr. Judson met, with the three converts, for 
prayer, two of them took part in the exercises, making 
" a little beginning, such as must be expected from the 



OF ADONIEAM JTTDSON. 



83 



first essay of converted heathens." In the evening 
of the 14th, four days later, the three converts re- 
paired to the zayat of their own accord, and held a 
similar meeting among themselves ; a trifling circum- 
stance, it may seem, in the eyes of some, but it was 
recorded by Mr. Juclson as a memorable incident, 
and justly viewed as a happy omen. 

On the 4th of December, Mr. Judson received an- 
other visit from Moung Shwa-Gnong, and wrote the 
following interesting account of it : 

"After several hours spent in metaphysical cavils, 
he owned that he did not believe any thing that he 
had said, and had only been trying me and the 
religion, being determined to embrace nothing but 
what he found unobjectionable and impregnable. 
i What,' said he, 4 do you think that I would pay 
you the least attention, if I found you could not 
answer all my questions, and solve all my diffi- 
culties % ' He then proceeded to say, that he really 
believed in God, his Son Jesus Christ, the atone- 
ment, &c. Said I, (knowing his deistical weakness,) 
4 Do you believe all that is contained in the book 
of Matthew, that I have given you ? In particular, 
do you believe that the Son of God died on a cross % ' 
4 Ah,' replied he, c you have caught me now. I be- 
lieve that he suffered death, but I can not admit 
that he suffered the shameful death of the cross.' 
4 Therefore,' said I, 4 you are not a disciple of Christ. 
A true disciple inquires not whether a fact is agree- 
able to his own reason, but, whether it is in the book. 



84 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



His pride has yielded to divine testimony. Teacher,, 
your pride is still unbroken. Break down your 
pride, and yield to the word of God.' He stopped 
and thought. 4 As you utter these words,' said he, 
* I see my error ; I have been trusting in my own 
reason, not in the word of God.' Some interruption 
now occurred. When we were again alone, he said, 
6 This day is different from all days on which I have 
visited you. I see my error in trusting in my own 
reason; and I now believe the crucifixion of Christ, 
because it is contained in the Scripture.' Some time 
after, speaking of the uncertainty of life, he said he 
thought he should not be lost, though he died sud- 
denly. Why? 'Because I love Jesus Christ.' Do 
you really love him ? ' ~No one that really knows 
him, can help loving him.' And so he departed." 

During the month of November, the calls at the 
zayat became daily less frequent, so that by the last 
of the month it was not uncommon for Mr. Judson 
to sit a whole day without being visited. His object 
had become gradually known in Bangoon and the 
neighboring country ; curiosity had abated, and fear 
kept serious inquirers away. 

The missionaries had received no serious disturb- 
ance while living in retirement, but when the zayat 
was opened on a road noted for the number of its 
pagodas, and the natives commenced thronging it 
for religious instruction, the government began to 
be suspicious. Mr. Judson now became convinced 
that banishment or death would, ere that date, have 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON". 



85 



been the fate of himself and his associates, had the 
ecclesiastical leaders supposed the new religion would 
meet with general favor among the people. He con- 
cluded that it would be necessary, in order to his 
success, to visit the emperor at Amarapura, at that 
time the capital of the country, and frankly make 
known the object of his mission to Burmah, and 
ask for the toleration of the religion he had come 
to teach. 



CHAPTEE VIII. 



Messrs. Judson and Colman embark for the Capital— Voyage up the Irrawaddy— 
Introduction to the King — His Rejection of their Petition — They return to 
Rangoon — Interview with the Native Converts — Mr. and Mrs. Colman go to 
Chittagong — Death of Mr. Colman. 

Having made arrangements necessary for the com- 
fort of their families, Messrs. Judson and Colman 
embarked for the seat of Bnrman dynasty, on the 
22d of December, 1819. The company consisted of 
sixteen persons besides themselves; ten rowmen, a 
steersman, a headsman, Moung l\ r au, who acted as 
steward for the company, a cook for the missiona- 
ries, a washerman, and an Englishman, who took 
charge of the guns and blunderbusses. These wea- 
pons were indispensable, the river being infested with 
robbers. The missionaries took with them a Bible 
in six volumes, elegantly bound, and each volume 
enclosed in a richly ornamented wrapper, as a pres- 
ent to the emperor ; also several pieces of fine cloth, 
and some other articles, for the members of the 
government.* 



* The organs of the Burman administration, and higher orders 
of nobility, are the woongyees, and the atw"enw"oons. The former 



ADONIRAM JTJDSON. 



87 



On the 17th of January, 1820, they readied Pah- 
gan, a celebrated city, between two and three hun- 
dred miles from Rangoon. It was the seat of a for- 
mer dynasty. The next day Mr. Juclson strolled 
among its extensive ruins, and surveyed its pagodas 
and other monuments of idolatry and decaying splen- 
dor. He ascended, he says, "as far as possible, 
some of the highest edifices, and at the height of one 
hundred feet, perhaps, beheld all the country around, 
covered with temples and monuments of every sort 
and size — some in utter ruin — some fast decaying, 
— and some exhibiting marks of recent attention 
and repair. The remains of the ancient wall of 
the city stretched beneath us. The pillars of the 
gates, and many a grotesque, decapitated relic of 
antiquity, checkered the motley scene. All con- 
spired to suggest those elevated and mournful ideas, 
which are attendant on a view of the decaying remains 
of ancient grandeur ; and though not comparable to 
such ruins as those of Palmyra and Balbec, (as they 
are represented,) still, deeply interesting to the anti- 
quary, and more deeply interesting to the christian 
missionary. Here, about eight hundred years ago, 
the religion of Buddh was first publicly recognized 
and established as the religion of the empire. 

rank next to the royal family ; are the public ministers of state, and 
constitute the supreme court. They issue the royal edicts in their 
own name. Their number is usually four, never more than six. The 
atwenwoons are the cabinet officers or private counselors, and usually 
the same in number as the woongyees. Their offices are not hered- 
itary, and they often rise from obscurity. Kingship is the only 
inherited honor in the empire. 



88 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" Here, then, Ah-rah-han, the first Buddhist apos- 
tle of Burmah, under the patronage of King Anan- 
ra-tha-men-zan, disseminated the doctrines of atheism, 
and taught his disciples to pant after annihilation, as 
the supreme good. Some of the ruins before our 
eyes were probably the remains of pagodas designed 
by himself. "We looked back on the centuries of 
darkness that are past. We looked forward, and 
christian hope would fain brighten the prospect. 
Perhaps we stand on the dividing line of the empires 
of darkness and light.. O, shade of Shen Ah-rah- 
han ! weep o'er thy fallen fanes ; retire from the 
scenes of thy past greatness. But thou smilest at 
my feeble voice. Linger, then, thy little remaining 
day. A voice mightier than mine, a still, small voice, 
will ere long sweep away every vestige of thy do- 
minion. The churches of Jesus will soon supplant 
these idolatrous monuments, and the chanting of the 
devotees of Buddh will die away before the christian 
hymn of praise." 

On the 25th of the same month, they passed Ava, 
the seat of the dynasty that immediately preceded 
that at Amarapura ; and in the afternoon of the same 
day, came in sight of the capital, distant nearly four 
hundred miles from Rangoon. The next day they 
gazed upon its glittering pagodas, and the dazzling 
steeple of the palace, whither they were about to 
" prostrate themselves at the golden feet," as their 
visit to the emperor would be called by Orientals. 
The introduction of the missionaries at the Burman 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



89 



court is best described by the graphic pen of Mr. 
Judson : 

r January 27. We left the boat, and put ourselves 
under the conduct of Moung Yo.* He carried ns first 
to Mya-day-men, as a matter of form ; and there we 
learned that the emperor had been privately apprised 
of our arrival, and said, 6 Let them be introduced.' 
We therefore proceeded to the palace. At the outer 
gate we were detained a long time, until the various 
officers were satisfied that we had a right to enter, 
after which we deposited a present for the private min- 
ister of state, Moung Zah, and were ushered into his 
apartments in the palace yard. He received us very 
pleasantly, and ordered us to sit before several 
governors and petty kings, who were waiting at his 
levee. We here, for the first time, disclosed our 
character and object; told him, that we were mis- 
sionaries, or 1 propagators of religion ; ? that we wished 
to appear before the emperor, and present our sacred 
books, accompanied with a petition. He took the 
petition into his hand, looked over about half of it, 
and then familiarly asked several questions about our 
God and our religion, to which we replied. Just at 
this crisis, some one announced that the golden foot 
was about to advance ; on which the minister hastily 
rose up, and put on his robes of state, saying, that he 
must seize the moment to present us to the emperor. 
We now found, that we had unwittingly fallen on an 

* Moung Yo was a favorite officer of Mya-day-men, who was a 
woongyee, or minister of state, and formerly viceroy of Rangoon. 



90 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



unpropitious time, it being the clay of the celebration 
of the late victory over the Cassays, and the very 
hour when his majesty was coming forth to witness 
the display made on the occasion. "When the minis- 
ter was dressed, he just said, ' How can you propa- 
gate religion in this empire? But, come along.' 
Our hearts sunk at these inauspicious words. He 
conducted us through various splendor and parade, 
until we ascended a night of stairs, and entered a 
most magnificent hall. He directed us where to sit, 
and took his place on one side ; the present was 
placed on the other, and Moung To, and another 
officer of Mya-day-men, sat a little behind. The 
scene to which we were now introduced really sur- 
passed our expectation. The spacious extent of the 
hall, the number and magnitude of the pillars, the 
height of the dome, the whole completely covered 
with gold, presented a most grand and imposing spec- 
tacle. Very few were present, and those evidently 
were great officers of state. Our situation prevented 
us from seeing the further avenue of the hall ; but 
the end where we sat opened into the parade which 
the emperor was about to inspect. We remained 
about five minutes, when every one put himself in 
the most respectful attitude, and Moung Yo whis- 
pered, that his majesty had entered. We looked 
through the hall, as far as the pillars would allow, 
and presently caught sight of this modern Ahasuerus. 
He came forward unattended — in solitary grandeur, 
exhibiting the proud gait and majesty of an eastern 
monarch. His dress was rich, but not distinctive, 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



91 



and he carried m his hand the gold-sheathed sword, 
which seems to have taken the place of the scepter 
of ancient times. But it was his high aspect and 
commanding eye, that chiefly riveted our attention. 
He stricled on. Every head, excepting ours, was 
now in the dust. We remained kneeling, our hands 
folded, our eyes fixed on the monarch. When he 
drew near, we caught his attention. He stopped, 
partly turned toward us : ' Who are these % ' The 
teachers, great king, I replied. 'What, you speak 
Eiirman — the priests that I heard of last night?' 
8 When did you arrive ? \ ' Are you teachers of relig- 
ion ? ' ' Are you like the Portuguese priest ? ' ' Are 
you married ? ' 4 Why do you dress so ? ' These, 
and some other similar questions, we answered ; 
when he appeared to be pleased with us, and sat 
down on an elevated seat — his hand resting on the 
hilt of his sword, and his eyes intently fixed on us. 
Moung Zah now began to read the petition, and it 
ran thus : 

"'The American teachers present themselves to 
receive the favor of the excellent king, the sovereign 
of land and sea. Hearing, that, on account of the 
greatness of the royal power, the royal country was 
in a quiet and prosperous state, we arrived at the 
town of Rangoon, within the royal dominions, and 
having obtained leave of the governor of that town, 
to come up and behold the golden face, we have 
ascended and reached the bottom of the golden feet. 
In the great country of America, we sustain the 
character of teachers and explainers of the contents 



92 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



of the sacred scriptures of our religion. And since 
it is contained in those scriptures, that, if we pass 
to other countries, and preach and propagate relig- 
ion, great good will result, and both those who 
teach and those who receive the religion, will be 
freed from future punishment, and enjoy, without 
decay or death, the eternal felicity of heaven, — that 
royal permission be given, that we, taking refuge in 
the royal power, may preach our religion in these 
dominions, and that those who are pleased with our 
preaching, and wish to listen to and be guided by it, 
whether foreigners or Burmans, may be exempt from 
government molestation, they present themselves to 
receive the favor of the excellent king, the sovereign 
of land and sea.' 

"The emperor heard this petition, and stretched 
out his hand. Moung Zah crawled forward and pre- 
sented it. His majesty began at the top, and delib- 
erately read it through. In the meantime, I gave 
Moung Zah an abridged copy of the tract, in which 
every offensive sentence was corrected, and the whole 
put into the handsomest style and dress possible. 
After the emperor had perused the petition, he 
handed it back, without saying a word, and took 
the tract. Our hearts now rose to God, for a display 
of his grace. ' O have mercy on Burmah ! Have 
mercy on her king ! ' But, alas ! the time was not 
yet come. He held the tract long enough to read the 
first two sentences, which assert that there is one 
eternal Gocl, who is independent of the incidents of 
mortality, and that, beside Him, there is no God ; 



OF ADOXIEAM JTTDS027. 93 

and then, with an air of indifference, perhaps dis- 
dain, he dashed it down to the ground ! Moung Zah 
stooped forward, picked it np, and handed it to us. 
Moung Yo made a slight attempt to save ns, by "un- 
folding one of the volumes which composed our pres- 
ent, and displaying its beauty ; but his majesty took 
no notice. Our fate was decided. After a few mo- 
ments, Moung Zah interpreted his royal master's will, 
in the following terms : c Why do yon ask for such 
permission ? Have not the Portuguese, the English, 
the Musselnians, and people of all other religions, full 
liberty to practise and worship according to then own 
customs ? In regard to the objects of your petition, 
his majesty gives no order. In regard to your sacred 
books, his majesty has no use for them, take them 
away.' 

"Something was now said about brother Col- 
man's skill in medicine; upon which the emperor 
once more opened his mouth, and said, 'Let them 
proceed to the residence of my physician, the Por- 
tuguese priest; let him examine whether they can 
be useful to me in that line, and report accordingly.' 
He then rose from his seat, stridecl on to the end of 
the hall, and there, after having dashed to the ground 
the first intelligence that he had ever received of the 
eternal God, his Maker, his Preserver, his Judge, he 
threw himself down on a cushion, and lay listening 
to the music, and gazing at the parade spread out 
before him ! 

" As for us and our present, we were huddled up 
and hurried away, without much ceremony. "We 



94 THE MISSIONARY LABORS 

passed out of the palace gates, with much more 
facility than we entered, and were conducted first to 
the house of Mya-day-men. There his officer re- 
ported our reception, but in as favorable terms as 
possible; and as his highness was not apprized of 
our precise object, our repulse appeared, probably, to 
him, not so decisive, as we knew it to be. We were 
next conducted two miles through the sun and dust 
of the streets of Ava, to the residence of the Portu- 
guese priest. He very speedily ascertained, that we 
were in possession of no wonderful secret, which 
would secure the emperor from all disease, and make 
him live for ever ; and we were accordingly allowed 
to take leave of the reverend inquisitor, and retreat 
to our boat. 

" At this stage of the business, notwithstanding 
the decided repulse we had received, we still cher- 
ished some hope of ultimately gaining our point. 
We regretted that a sudden interruption had pre- 
vented our explaining our objects to Moung Zah, in 
that familiar and confidential manner which we had 
intended; and we determined, therefore, to make 
another attempt upon him in private. 

" January 28. — Early in the morning, we had the 
pleasure of seeing our friend Mr. G-auger coming to 
our boat. It may not be amiss to mention, that he 
is tne collector, who was chiefly instrumental in 
relieving us from the exorbitant demand, which, a 
few months ago, was made upon us in Eangoon. 
He now told us, that he had heard of our repulse, 



OF ADOOTRAM JTTDSOK. 



95 



but would not have us give up all hope ; that he was 
particularly acquainted with Moung Zah, and would 
accompany us to his house, a little before sunset, at 
an hour when he was accessible. This precisely 
accorded with our intentions. ' 

"¥e went to the house of Moung Zah, some way 
beyond the palace. He received us with great 
coldness and reserve. Mr. Ganger urged every 
argument that we suggested, and some others. He 
finally stated that, if we obtained the royal favor, 
other foreigners would come and settle in the empire, 
and trade would be greatly benefited. This argu- 
ment alone seemed to have effect on the mind of the 
minister, and, looking out from the cloud which 
covered his face, he vouchsafed to say, that, if we 
would wait some time, he would endeavor to speak to 
his majesty about us. From this remark it was im- 
possible to derive any encouragement, and having 
nothing further to urge, we left Mr. Ganger, and, 
bowing down to the ground, took leave of this great 
minister of state, who, under the emperor, guides 
the movements of the whole empire. 

" It was now evening. We had four miles to walk 
by moonlight. Two of our disciples only followed 
us. They had pressed as near as they ventured to 
the door of the hall of audience, and listened to 
words which sealed the extinction of their hopes and 
ours. For some time we spoke not. 

' Some natural tears we dropt, but wiped them soon. 
The world was all before us, where to choose 
Our place of rest, and Providence our guide.' 



96 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



And, as our first parents took their solitary way 
through Eden, hand in hand, so we took our way 
through this great city, which, to our late imagina- 
tion, seemed another Eden; but now, through the 
magic touch of disappointment, seemed blasted and 
withered, as if smitten by the fatal influence of the 
cherubic sword. 

" Arrived at the boat, we threw ourselves down, 
completely exhausted in body and mind. For three 
days, we had walked eight miles a day, the most of 
the way in the heat of the sun, which, even at this 
season, in the interior of these countries, is exceed- 
ingly oppressive ; and the result of our travels and 
toils has been — the wisest and best possible — a 
result which, if we could see the end from the 
beginning, would call forth our highest praise. O 
slow of heart to believe and trust in the constant 
presence and overruling agency of our almighty 
Saviour! " 

With their plans thwarted, and their fond hopes 
blighted, the missionaries set out on their return to 
Rangoon, on the 29th of January. Fourteen days 
afterward, they stopped for the night at a town called 
Pyee, where they met Moung Shwa-Gnong. He 
had declined accompanying them to the capital, but 
just after they pushed off from Rangoon, he ran up 
to the wharf, raised his hand to his head, bade them 
adieu, and continued to look after them, until the 
boat was lost behind a projecting point. His mis- 
sion to Pyee was professedly to visit a sick friend, 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



97 



though It is likely lie had a double object in view, 
he having a secret desire, no doubt, to meet, the 
missionaries, and ascertain the result of their visit. 
"When told that their petition and presents had been 
trampled beneath the golden foot, and of the danger 
that must attend further efforts to propagate the new 
religion, he manifested no serious alarm, but re- 
peated, with calmness, and in a firm voice, the most 
prominent points of christian faith, and showed by 
all he said, that he had great interest in the success 
of the mission. Mr. Judson hinted to him, that the 
missionaries would probably leave Rangoon, when 
he replied: "Say not so; there are some who will 
investigate, notwithstanding ; and, rather than have 
you quit Rangoon, I will go to the Mangen teacher 
and have a dispute. I know I can silence him. ] 
know the truth is on my side." Hearing this re- 
mark, Mr. Judson told him to remember that the 
Mangen teacher had a pair of fetters and an iron 
mall as offsets to his tongue — and thus ended the 
conversation. 

Pleased with the appearance of Moung Shwa- 
Gnong, but with spirits still dejected, and with no 
hope of other than divine countenance of their 
sacred work, the missionaries pushed on, and arrived 
at Rangoon on the 18th of February. Convening 
the three disciples without delay, they narrated their 
adventures at Amarapura, and stated that they con- 
templated leaving Rangoon and establishing a mis- 
sion, Providence aiding them, in a district between 
Bengal and Arracan. 
5 



08. 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Far from being intimidated at the conduct of the 
emperor, the disciples began, with much composure 
and earnestness, to explain away difficulties, and to 
persuade the teachers not to look upon their cause in 
those parts as hopeless. They all entreated them not 
to think of abandoning the mission ; but, in case 
they should do it, two of them, Moung iSTau and 
Moung Thah-lah, said they should accompany them, 
being determined, as one of them remarked, to "go 
where preaching is to be had." Moung Byee said 
that, being a married man, he could not follow his 
teachers ; but, if left alone, he should continue to 
perform the duties of "Jesus Christ's religion." 

Bringing with him a brother-in-law, named Moung 
Myat-yah, the last mentioned convert soon had 
another interview with the missionaries, which Mr. 
Judson thus describes : 

Teacher,' said he, 'my mind is distressed; I 
can neither eat nor sleep, since I find you are going 
away. I have been around among those who live 
near us, and I find some who are even now examin- 
ing the new religion. Brother Myat-yah is one of 
them, and he unites with me in my petitions. (Here 
Myat-yah assented that it was so.) Do stay with us 
a few months. Do stay till there are eight or ten 
disciples. Then appoint one to be the teacher of the 
rest ; I shall not be concerned about the event ; 
though you should leave the country, the religion 
will spread of itself. The emperor himself cannot stop 
it. But if you go now, and take the two disciples 



OF ADONIBAM JTJDS02T. 



90 



that can follow, I shall be left alone. I cannot 
baptize those who may wish to embrace this religion. 
What can I do ? ' Monng Nan came in, and ex- 
pressed himself in a similar way. He thought that 
several wonld yet become disciples, notwithstanding 
all opposition, and that it was best for ns to stay 
awhile. AYe conlcl not restrain om* tears at hearing 
all this ; and we told them, that, as we lived only for 
the promotion of the cause of Christ among the 
Bnrmans, if there was any prospect of snccess in 
Eangoon, we had no desire to go to any other place, 
and wonld, therefore, reconsider the matter." 

The result of the reconsideration was, that Mr. 
and Mrs. Jndson conclnded to remain, and Mr. 
and Mrs. Colman to proceed to Chittagong, and 
there form a station, as a refuge for the missionaries 
and converts, should it be found necessary for them 
to flee from Eangoon. Accordingly, Mr. and Mrs. 
Colman embarked for Bengal, in March, 1820, and 
arrived at Chittagong in Jime. They commenced 
their labors at Cox's Bazaar, an unhealthy town of 
abont two thousand inhabitants. There Mr. Colman 
died of the jungle fever, on the 4th of July, 1822. 
His wife returned to Bengal, and was subsequently 
married to Rev. Amos Sntton, an English mission- 
ary, who has labored many years at Orissa, in 
Hindostan. 



CHAPTER IX. 



More Conversions — Progress of the Work of Translating the New Testament — 
Sickness of Mrs. Judson — Mr. Judson repairs with her to Bengal — Their 
Return — The Native Converts — The new Viceroy — Moung Ing — Mrs. Jud- 
son's 111 Health, and Departure for America — Clouds — Their Dispersion — 
Arrival of Dr. Price — Return of Mr. Hough. 

Mr. and Mrs. Judson were once more alone at 
the Rangoon station, with dim prospects of being 
permitted long to remain there. Defeated in his 
attempts to secure the favor of the emperor, Mr. 
Judson would not now be surprised, at any moment, 
to receive orders to leave the country. Still, strong 
inducements presented themselves for him to re- 
main ; and, trusting in Providence for protection, he 
resolved to toil on, until peremptorily commanded 
to leave. 

The converts were now giving evidence of healthy 
spiritual growth; the number of inquirers was grad- 
ually increasing ; and a few of the latter class seemed 
to be entering the vestibule of mercy. Among these 
were Oo Yan and Moung Shwa-ba. The former 



ADONERAM JTJDSON". 



101 



was a learned casuist, and a subtle and zealous 
disputer. His peculiar tenets are thus described 
by Mr. Judson: 

"He was ready to admit, that the atheistic system 
of the Buddhists was not tenable ; but endeavored 
to fortify himself on a middle system, between that 
and the christian ; the very system in which Moung 
Shwa-Gnong formerly rested, and which, for distinc- 
tion's sake, may be fitly termed the semi-atheistic. 
Its fundamental doctrine is, that divine wisdom, not 
concentrated in any existing spirit, or embodied 
in any form, but diffused throughout the universe, 
and partaken in different degrees by various intelli- 
gences, and in a very high degree by the Buddhs, 
is the true and only God. This poor system, which 
is evidently guilty of suicide, Oo Tan made every 
possible effort to keep alive ; but I really think, that 
in his own mind, he felt the case to be hopeless. 
His mode of reasoning, however, is soft, insinuating, 
and acute ; and so adroitly did he act his part, that 
Moung Shwa-Gnong, with his strong arm, and I, 
with the- strength of truth, were scarcely able to 
keep hirn down." 

Moung Shwa-ba was introduced to Mr. Judson by 
Moung Thah-lah on the 21st of March, 1820, and 
three days after gave clear evidence of conversion. 
He was baptized on the 20th of the following month. 

About this time, a woman, named Mah Men-la, 
who had renounced the religion of Gaudama some 



102 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



years before, and become semi-atheistic, was fre- 
quently at the zayat. Sbe bad met witb Mr. Jud- 
son's tract two years before, and derived therefrom 
tbe idea of an eternal God. Tbe following brief ex- 
tract from Mr. Judson's journal, in reference to ber, 
is very interesting : 

" April 20. Mab Men-la and ber friends bave 
been witb Mrs. Judson all day. Sbe gives increas- 
ing evidence of being a real disciple; but is . ex- 
tremely timid, through fear of persecution. One of 
ber remarks deserves notice as a natural expression 
of true cbristian feeling. c I am surprised,' said sbe, 
6 to find tbis religion bas such an effect on my mind, 
as to make me love tbe disciples of Christ more tban 
my dearest natural relations. 5 Sbe is a woman of 
very superior discernment and mental energy. One 
of tbe women wbo bave frequently accompanied ber 
in ber visits, met witb a tract at old Pegu, about six 
weeks ago, and came all tbe way to Rangoon, chiefly, 
sbe says, on tbat account." 

On tbe day tbat be penned tbe above remarks, 
Mr. Judson finished tbe translation of Ephesians, 
which be bad commenced before going to Amara- 
pura, but bad been obliged to relinquish, on account 
of weakness of tbe eyes. At tbe same date, be bad 
tbe book of Acts under way, and declared bis inten- 
tion to give it to tbe young pupils in tbe school of 
Christ as fast as he possibly could. Heretofore, be 
could give them only the gospel of Matthew ; now 3 



OF ADOSEBAM JTDSOX. 



103 



he had the happiness of placing a second book of 
the Xew Testament in their hands, with the prospect 
of soon being able to feed them still more bounti- 
fully on the manna of divine truth ; and the good 
man makes a record of his joy and gratitude to God 
for manifold mercies. He then speaks of the pro- 
gress of religions incjuiry, and of other matters of 
sufficient importance to be transcribed ; 

** April 30. — Lord's-day. One of the busiest days 
I have ever spent. Sot a multitude of visitants, as 
formerly. That we can not expect in present circum- 
stances. But. beside the usual evening assembly, 
there were eight or ten present at worship, some of 
whom were with me from nine in the morning till 
ten at night. Mah Men-la and her company were 
with Iffire. Judson, who has had a serious attack of 
the liver complaint, for a fortnight past, and is now 
in a course of salivation. 

* Oo Tan, after having searched out all the dif- 
ficult points of religion, came to-day to the ne plus 
ultra — How are sin and eternal misery reconcilable 
with the character of an infinitely holy, wise, and 
powerful God! He at length obtained such satis- 
faction, that he could not restrain laughing, from 
pure mental delight, and kept recurring to the sub- 
ject, and repeating my remarks to those around him. 
He was accompanied, as usual, by his two friends, 
Moimg Thah-a and Moung Myat-lah, husband of 
Mah Men-la. "With these came also one Moung To, 
a disciple of Moung Shwa-Gnong, a poor man, but 



104 



THE MISSIONAET LABOES 



a sharp reasoner. He was, or pretended to be, on 
the semi-atheistic plan. After ascertaining his pre- 
cise ground, I used an argument, which, in a late 
combat with Oo Yan, I found quite invincible. It 
is simply this.: 'No mind, no wisdom — temporary 
mind, temporary wisdom — eternal mind, eternal wis- 
dom.' Now, as all the semi-atheists firmly believe in 
eternal wisdom, this concise statement sweeps with 
irresistible sway, through the very joints and mar- 
row of their system. And though it may seem 
rather simple and inconclusive, to one acquainted 
with Burman reasoning, its effect is uniformly deci- 
sive. No sooner is this short sentence uttered, than 
one significantly nods his head, as if to say, There 
you have it. Another cries out to the opponent, 
You are undone, destroyed. Another says, Talk 
about wisdom; where else will you find it? The 
disputant himself, who was, perhaps, preparing a 
learned speech about the excellence and efficacy 
and eternity of wisdom, quite disconcerted by this 
unexpected onset, sits looking at the wreck of his 
system, and wondering at the simple means which 
have spread such ruin around him ; presently he 
looks up, (for the Burmans are frequently candid,) 
and says, Your words are very appropriate. And 
perhaps his next question is, How can I become a 
disciple of the God you worship ? 

" All the visitors to-day, and indeed all the semi- 
atheists are despisers of Gaudama, and the estab- 
lished religion of the land. Moung Shwa-Gnong 
has disseminated this heresy in Rangoon for several 



OF ADOHIBAM JTDS0N. 



105 



rears v but since lie has become acquainted with us, 
he frequently tells his adherents, 'I know nothing; 
if you want true wisdom, go to the foreign teacher, 
and there you will find it* I have reason to believe 
that this heresy is not confined to Rangoon, but is 
taking root in various parts of the country, and pre- 
paring the way for the christian religion. O, for 
toleration — a little toleration. "We will be content 
to baptize in the night, and hold worship in private ; 
but we do pray that we may not be utterly banished 
from the land : that we may not be cut up, root and 
branch. O, that these poor souls who are groping 
in the dark, feeling after the truth, may have time 
and opportunities to find the precious treasure, which 
will enrich them for evermore. TVe are all looking 
with anxiety toward the golden feet. Our viceroy, 
Moung Shwa-thah, has gone thither on a visit ; and 
it is doubtful whether he will return, or his rival 
Mya-day-men. If the latter, there is some reason 
to hope that we shall keep footing in Rangoon, at 
least, during his administration.*' 

Among the visitors at the zayat, in May and June, 
were Moung -Myat-yah, Moung Thah-yah, Motmg 
Gway, and Moung Xyo-dwa. The first two were 
baptized on the 1th of the latter month, and the last 
two on the 16th of July. Two days afterward, 
Moons Shwa-Gnonsr and Mali Men-la followed in 
the same delightful ordinance. The latter was the 
first Burman female baptized, and the tenth convert. 
"While these encouraging events were transpiring, 
5* 



106 



THE MISSIOHAEY LABOKS 



the health of Mrs. Judson was gradually on the de- 
cline ; and in the early part of July she began to 
make preparations to sail for -Bengal for relief. Her 
extreme weakness rendered it necessary that Mr. 
Judson should accompany her, and, amid the tears 
and pious benedictions of the new-born saints, they 
embarked on the 19th of the month. Just before 
going aboard the ship, Mr. Judson addressed a line 
to Dr. Baldwin, in which he says : " Never did I 
feel more un willingness ' to leave Rangoon, nor was 
the mission ever in more interesting circumstances 
than at the present time. Since our return from Ava, 
I have not ventured to make the least public move- 
ment, but confined myself at home, holding private 
worship, translating the Scriptures, and conversing 
with those who visited me. The spirit of God has, 
however, continued operating and carrying on the 
work, which began before we went up to Ava, at 
which time we had baptized three. 

"All the ten baptized disciples give satisfactory 
evidence of being true converts. Those of the longest 
standing are evidently growing christians. Some of 
them take the lead in prayer meetings, with great 
propriety; and nearly all of them have made some 
attempt at this exercise before the church. A good 
degree of christian affection prevails among them all ; 
the appearance of which, Moung Shwa-G-nong says, 
convinced him, more than anything else, of the 
divine origin and efficacy of the christian religion." 

The missionaries arrived at Calcutta on the 8th of 
August. The climate being more salubrious, and the 



OF ADOETRAM JTTDSON. 



10T 



society more congenial at Serampore, Mrs. Judson 
was soon removed thither. Thongh under the care 
of skillful physicians, she gained but little for several 
months ; and Mr. Judson deemed it so important, for 
him to be at Rangoon, that he was about to leave her 
in the care of their English friends, and return ; but 
about this time she rapidly improved, and concluded 
to accompany her husband. They arrived at their 
adopted home on the 5th of January, 1821. 

The divine Shepherd had watched over the little 
nock, in the absence of the missionaries. Four or 
five met their under shepherd at the wharf, and 
greeted him and his companion with the warmest 
salutations ; the others, in town, hurried to the mis- 
sion-house, as soon as the good news of the teacher's 
return reached them ; and that night they there met 
for prayer. It was a season of great rejoicing, and 
the prayers then offered must have been freighted 
with the incense of gratitude and praise. 

In about a week after their return, the missionaries 
were permitted to welcome the only baptized Bur- 
man whom they had not previously seen. This was 
Moung Gway, who hastened in from the jungle ab 
soon as he heard of their arrival. 

Although the lives of all the converts had been 
preserved, one of them, Moung Shwa-Gnong, had 
narrowly escaped the cruel rigors of heathen law. 
Soon after Mya-day-men became the ruler of the 
district where he was living, the priests and officers 
of the village conspired against him, and seemed to 
be bent on his destruction. One of them, who was 



108 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



a member of tlie highest court, stated one day, in 
the presence of the governor, that Moung Shwa- 
Gnong was trying "to turn the priests' rice pot 
bottom side up." To this complaint his excellency 
answered, "What consequence? Let the priest 
turn it back again." This remark showed the tol- 
erant disposition of its author, and this trait in his 
character doubtless saved the life of Moung Shwa- 
Gnong. 

The following extracts of a letter from the pen of 
Mr. Judson, at this period, indicate his studious 
habits, his progress in translating, and the prospects 
of the mission : 

Rangoon, April 8, 1821. 

My dear Brother Hough : — I fully intended to 
send the translation of Acts by the Elizabeth, which 
carries this letter ; but it is not within the compass 
of possibility. I have sat with the teacher from 
half past eight in the morning, except dinner time, 
till five at night, for some time past. The revision 
was completed yesterday; but I cannot possibly 
transcribe it in time for the present opportunity. It 
shall positively be sent by the next, and will, most 
probably, be accompanied by Ephesians; upon the 
revision of which, we shall enter immediately. 
* * * * * * 

"No further news of war; but nothing to be ex- 
pected till after the rains. May-Zoo's son called in 
just now, and told me that Moung Shwa-thah had 
made a great effort to supplant the present viceroy, 
and had been wholly repulsed ; the emperor saying 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSOK. 



109 



that his grandfather, the late emperor, had given the 
place to Mya-day-men for life. If half of this is 
true, it is most propitious to the mission. I think 
we are in no fear of persecution during the adminis- 
tration of the present viceroy. But air things are 
fluctuating in this country. 

On the 20th of May, 1821, Mr. Judson was visited 
by a new and striking character, a disciple of the 
great semi-atheistic teacher of the country. His 
name was Moung Long. Like the rest of the sect, 
he was, "in reality, a complete skeptic, scarcely be- 
lieving his own existence." His metaphysics were 
not wholly unlike those of some living men, and 
professed scholars, even in christian lands. His 
wife could not invite him to partake of a dish of 
rice, without his offering queries touching its na- 
ture — whether it was matter or spirit, an idea, or 
a nonentity. But he who could puzzle his wife with 
his disgusting gibberish, could not confound Mr. 
Judson. 

' 'When he first came in, I thought him an ordi- 
nary man. He has only one good eye ; but I soon 
discovered that that one eye has as ' great a quantity 
of being' as half a dozen common eyes. * * * 
He professed to be an inquirer after the truth ; and I 
accordingly opened to him some parts of the gospel. 
He listened with great seriousness; and, when I 
ceased speaking, remained so thoughtful, and appa- 
rently impressed with the truth, that I began to hope 



110 THE MISSION AET LABORS 

he would come to some good, and, therefore, invited 
him to ask some question relative to what he had 
heard. c Your servant,' said he, 'has not much 
to inquire of your lordship. In your lordship's sa- 
cred speech, however, there are one or two words 
which your servant does not understand. Your 
lordship says, that in the beginning, God created one 
man and one woman. I do not understand (I beg 
your lordship's pardon,) what a man is, and why he 
is called a man.' My eyes were now opened, in an 
instant, to his real character ; and I had the happi- 
ness to be enabled, for about twenty minutes, to lay 
blow after blow upon his skeptic head, with such 
effect that he kept falling and falling ; and, though 
he made several desperate efforts to get up, he found 
himself, at last, prostrate on the ground, unable to 
stir. Moung Shwa-Gnong, who had been an attentive 
listener, was extremely delighted to see his enemy so 
well punished ; for this Moung Long has sorely har- 
assed him, in time past. The poor fellow, was not, 
however, in the least angry at his discomfiture ; but, 
in the true spirit of his school, said that, though he 
had heard much of me, the reality far exceeded the 
report. Afterward, he joined us in worship, and 
listened with great attention, as did also his wife." 

Tor several months the holy enterprise was highly 
favored. Mya-day-men continued tolerant, and in- 
quirers came to the zayat without the terrors of a 
governmental frown hanging over them. Moung 
Ing, the second convert, who had been absent from 



OF ADOXTEAM JUDSON. 



Ill 



Rangoon, with one or two others, had now been 
added to the chnrch ;* and Mr. Jndson was receiv- 
ing valuable assistance from Monng Shwa-Gnong 
and Monng Shwa-ba, in translating the Scriptures. 

Having sent the Epistle to the Ephesians and the 
first part of Acts to Mr. Hough, Mr. Judson next 
translated the Gospel and Epistles of John, "those 
exquisitely sweet and precious portions of the IS'ew 
Testament." These he finished in the summer of 
1821 ; and, at the same time, made considerable 
advancement on the latter part of Acts. 

While things were thus prospering, the health of 
Mrs. Judson was again declining ; and the character 
of her disease had now become so alarming, that it 
was deemed expedient for her to return to her native 
land, or seek some other salubrious climate. De- 
ciding to visit America, with a bleeding heart she 
bade farewell to her husband and the little band of 

* February 25. — Moung Ing presented "his petition for baptism and 
admission into the church ; and we unhesitatingly agreed to grant 
his request, next Lord's day. * * * The manner of his first 
acquaintance with the truth, is somewhat noticeable : I had con- 
versed with two men, who visited the zayat the preceding evening, 
and given them a tract. On their way home, they called at the 
house of the Tsahlen teacher, where Moung Ing resided : said a few 
things about the eternal God and the new religion, by way of disap- 
proval, and concluded that the tract was good for nothing but to tear 
up and make segars of. Put the truth, which they despised, fell like 
a flash of lightning on the benighted soul of Moung Ing. The 
next morning, before sunrise, he was in the porch of the zayat, and, 
on opening the doors, we found the poor man standing without. He 
will not, I trust, meet with any such detention at the doors of 
heaven. — Mr. Judson's Journal, 1821. 



112 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



endeared disciples, the objects of her tenderest care 
and her most earnest prayers, and sailed for Bengal 
on the 21st of August, 1821. There she was detained 
three or four months, and at last took a free berth in 
a vessel bound to England, where she remained until 
August, 1822 ; she then took passage for ISTew York, 
where she arrived on the 25th of the following month. 
In visiting her kindred in her native state, and in 
traversing the land, responding to the calls of duty 
and the wants of the cause in which all her interests 
were enlisted for life, let us leave her for a season, 
and return to the sole missionary in the Burman 
empire, the lone yet cheerful, energetic and intrepid 
reaper in a desolate and apparently unpromising 
field. We say unpromising, for such it had suddenly 
become,- as will be seen by the tone of a letter which 
Mr. Judson wrote to Dr. Sharp, dated at Rangoon, 
September 17th, 1821. The following is an extract: 

" If I had sufficient property, I should think of 
another visit to Ava ; but a thousand rupees of mis- 
sion money is too much to be thrown away on an 
improbability. I have some idea, that in a year's 
residence at court, I should find some influential per- 
son, who would procure me favorable access to the 
presence of the emperor. Unless some word or look 
can be obtained from his majesty, it seems morally 
impossible that anything can be done in this country. 
It is true that, by the operation of the Spirit of God, 
multitudes can be converted, where the means are 
used ; but, at present, no one dares come near me ; 



OF ADONIRAM JTTDSON. 



113 



and for me to go out into the streets, and zayats, 
and pagodas, and proclaim a proscribed religion, 
would be the height of madness. 

" I suppose I feel more disheartened just at pres- 
ent, in consequence of being entirely alone, as I have 
been since Mrs. Judson's departure, with not a single 
person in the whole place who can give me a word 
of advice or encouragement. But I sometimes derive 
comfort from a higher source, and feel happy in com- 
mitting the forlorn hope into the hands of the great 
Captain of onr salvation, who is able to keep those 
who are persecuted from being forsaken, and those 
who are cast down from being destroyed." 

During the month in which this letter was written, 
another complaint against Moimg Shwa-Gnong was 
brought before the viceroy ; and as proof of the cor- 
rectness of these charges might be presented, and 
thereby expose his life, he thought it prudent for him 
to absent himself for a time from those quarters. He 
came to the mission-house and told Mr. Judson he 
was about to take his family up the country among 
the heretical sect who had been his former associates, 
and that he had come to receive the parting benedic- 
tion of the teacher, and to obtain some tracts, por- 
tions of Scripture, &c, to scatter among the needy. 
With these he was cheerfully furnished, and the 
Burman colporteur took his departure. 

At the same time, the other converts began to re- 
ceive the scrutiny of the priests and civil authorities ; 
and, as intimated in the letter to Dr. Sharp, they 



114: 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



avoided the zayat entirely. They continued to visit 
the mission-house, however, and there received in- 
struction which tended to their growth in grace. 
This circumstance was the only source of encourage- 
ment and consolation now left to Mr. Judson, for no 
inquirers, whatever their anxieties might be, dared 
come near him. 

Such was the state of tilings the latter part of the 
year 1821. It was an unpromising period in the 
history of the mission ; and to any other person than 
Mr. Judson, the darkness might have been impene- 
trable. He, 

" Eager to hope, but not less firm to bear, 
Acquainted with, all feelings save despair," 

struggled on, with a fixedness of purpose that no 
adverse circumstances could bend; laying broader 
the foundation for his usefulness, when the morn, 
whose saffron tints his eye of faith seemed ever to 
descry, should break upon his efforts. By applying 
himself almost exclusively, and most intensely, to 
translating, he had, at the close of the year, finished 
more than one-third of the New Testament, and 
nearly completed a second translation of Matthew : 

On the 13th of December, 1821, he was cheered 
by the arrival of Rev. J onathan D. Price and wife, 
who had been appointed by the Board in the preced- 
ing May. The latter died at Rangoon the 2d of 
May following. She was not allowed to enter fairly 
upon the great work on which her heart was set ; 
yet she had no murmurings to make. Her illness 



OF ADOXTRAM JUDSOX. 



115 



was exceedingly painful ; but patient, resigned, and 
rejoicing in Christ, she went to the rest reserved for 
the people of God. 

Mr. Price had received a medical, as veil as the- 
ological education ; and was appointed to act in the 
double capacity of physician and missionary. Shortly 
after his arrival, Mr. and Mrs. Hongh returned with 
the printing press from Serampore. 

During the first half of the year 1822, the pros- 
pects of the mission constantly brightened. Oppo- 
sition gradually abated, until it seemed to have 
entirely ceased ; the zayat was again open ; inquirers 
were calling daily, and before the close of sum- 
mer, five more persons were baptized. Their names 
were Mah Doke, Moung Thah-a, May Mee, May 
Zoo, and Mee Men-oo. The last had been blind, bnt 
was now restored through the skill of Dr. Price. 
She was quite young, mee^ denoting a girl. 

Previons to this addition, the church lost one of 
its older members, Moung Thah-lah. He died sud- 
denly, of the cholera-morbus, in Xovember. 1821. 

Part of the time during the spring and summer 
of 1822, Mr. Judson was laid by with illness. "Writ- 
ing in his journal on the last day of June, he says : 
"Am just recovering from severe illness. A few 
weeks ago, was taken with a fever, slight at first, but 
daily increasing in violence, until the event became 
very dubious. On recovering from the effects of the 
fever, and just resuming the translation, I was sud- 
denly seized with the cholera-morbus, though that 
disease is not now prevalent in the place ; and 



116 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



several hours of suffering elapsed, before medicine 
took effect. This, with the quantity of laudanum 
administered, deprived me of the little remaining 
strength which the fever left me, and I am now 
scarcely able to hold my pen. It is singular, that 
last rainy season I was subject to the same diseases, 
though in a different order ; and I ascribe it to the 
ascendency which the climate of Rangoon is obtain- 
ing over my constitution. If it be the will of God, 
I feel desirous of living to finish the New Testament 
in Burman, — a work which must otherwise be sus- 
pended for some time." 



CHAPTEE X. 



Mr. Judson and Dr. Price visit Ava — Favorable Reception of the Former — Mr 
Judson's Interviews with Moung Zah, with the King, and Prince M.— Mr. 
Judson's Negotiations for a Building Lot — Sufficiently gains the End for 
which he had visited the Capital, and returns to Rangoon — State of the 
Mission there. 

The king having heard of the arrival of Dr. Price, 
and being desirous to test his medical skill, sum- 
moned him to Ava. As the doctor was ignorant 
of court customs, and unversed in the language, it 
seemed necessary that Mr. Judson should accom- 
pany him. Having decided so to do, a day or two 
before their embarkation, Mr. Judson addressed a 
communication to Dr. Baldwin, in which, after men- 
tioning, with other matters, that he had proceeded 
to the end of the Second of Corinthians, including 
Ephesians, Hebrews, and the Epistles of John, in 
translating, when the summons came for Dr. Price 
to repair to the capital, he says : " For several weeks 
past, there has been a considerable excitement in the 
minds of our Burman friends. The assembly on 
Lord's day has risen to thirty or forty. Five have 
lately been baptized, and there remain several hope- 
ful inquirers. These circumstances make me very 



118 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



reluctant to leave Eangoon; yet the path of duty 
seems to lead to Ava. May the Lord direct and 
prosper this our second attempt to gain some footing 
in the capital and the palace." 

Leaving the station at Eangoon in charge of Mr. 
Hough, Messrs. Judson and Price set out on the 
28th of August, 1822, and arrived at Ava on the 
27th of September. They were promptly introduced 
to his golden majesty, who received Dr. Price with 
much graciousness, and inquired very particularly 
about his medical acquirements, but took no notice 
of Mr. Judson for three or four days, except as inter- 
preter. Moung Zah, whose acquaintance Mr. Jud- 
son had made at Amarapura, recognized him at once, 
and after conversing a short time on the subject of 
religion, privately encouraged him to remain at the 
seat of government. 

Four days after his arrival, Mr. Judson writes : 
" To-day, the king noticed me for the first time, 
though I have appeared before him nearly every day 
since our arrival. After making some inquiries, as 
usual, about brother Price, he added, c And you, in 
black, what are you ? a medical man, too % ' 6 Not a 
medical man, but a teacher of religion, your majesty.' 
He proceeded to make a few inquiries about my 
religion, and then put the alarming question, whether 
any had embraced it. I evaded, by saying, 'Not 
here.' He persisted. ' Are there any in Eangoon ? ' 
' There are a few.' ' Are they foreigners ? ' I trem- 
bled for the consequence of an answer, which might 
involve the little church in ruin ; but the truth must 



OF ADOXIEAM JTTSOX. 



119 



be sacrificed, or the consequences hazarded ; and I 
therefore replied. 4 There are some foreigners and 
some Burmans.' He remained silent a few moments, 
bnt presently showed that he was not displeased, by 
asking a great variety of questions on religion, and 
geography, and astronomy, some of which were 
answered in such a satisfactory manner, as to occasion 
a general expression of approbation in all the court- 
present. After his majesty retired, a Than-dau-tsen 
(a royal secretary) entered into conversation, and 
allowed me to expatiate on several topics of the chris- 
tian religion, in my usual way. And all this took 
place in the hearing of the very man. now an atwen- 
woon, who, many years ago, caused his uncle to be 
tortured almost to death, under the iron mall, for 
renouncing Buddhism and embracing the Korean 
Catholic religion ! But I knew it not at the time, 
though, rrorn his age, a slight suspicion of the truth 
passed across my mind. Thanks to God, for the 
encouragement of this day ! The monarch of the 
empire has distinctly understood, that some of his 
subjects have embraced the christian religion, and 
his wrath has been restrained. Let us then hope, 
that, as he becomes more acquainted with the excel- 
lence of the religion, he will be more and more wil- 
ling that his subjects should embrace it." 

On the 3d of October, the missionaries moved into 
the house — or, more properly, shed — which had been 
erected for them by the emperors orders. It was a 
temporary structure, and a poor defen-e against rain 
and the rapacious ctiriosity of idle idolaters. 



120 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



The day following, on the return of the mission- 
aries from the palace, whither they were accustomed 
to repair immediately after breakfast, Mr. Judson 
was sent for by Prince M., the emperor's half-brother, 
who wished to converse with him on science and 
religion. He had previously called on Dr. Price for 
medical advice. Being paralytically affected in all 
his limbs, and thus " cut off from the usual sources 
of amusement, and having associated a little with the 
Portuguese padres who have lived at Ava, he has 
acquired a strong taste for foreign science. My com- 
munications," continues Mr. Judson, " interested him 
very much, and I found it difficult to get away, until 
brother Price sent expressly for me to go again to 
the palace." 

Soon after this interview, Mr. Judson was taken 
sick with the fever and ague, with which he was 
afflicted about ten days. He had a similar attack 
the early part of the next month. We subjoin 
portions of his journal written between the two 
seasons of illness, which will be found particularly 
interesting : 

" October 22. — Brother Price went to Amara- 
pura, to meet a gentleman just arrived from Pan- 
goon, who, we hope, may have letters for us. At 
night, brother Price returned, with a large parcel 
of letters, and magazines, and newspapers, from our 
beloved, far-distant, native land — and what was still 
more interesting to me, eight sheets from Mrs. Jud- 
son on her passage toward England, the first direct 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSON. 



121 



intelligence I have received from her since she left 
Madras roads. 

"October 23. — Had some pleasant conversation 
with Moung Z., in the palace, partly in the hearing 
of the king. At length his majesty came forward, 
and honored me with some personal notice for the 
second time, inquired much about my country, and 
authorized me to invite American ships to his do- 
minions, assuring them of protection, and offering 
every facility for the purposes of trade. 

"October 28. — Spent the forenoon with Prince M. 
He obtained for the first time, (though I have ex- 
plained it to him many times,) some view of the 
nature of the atonement, and cried out, ' Good, good.' 
He then proposed a number of objections, which I 
removed to his apparent satisfaction. Our subse- 
quent conversation turned, as usual, on points of 
geography and astronomy. He candidly acknowl- 
edged, that he could not resist my arguments in 
favor of the Copernican system ; and that, if he ad- 
mitted them, he must also admit that the Buddhist 
system was overthrown. 

" October 30. — Spent part of the forenoon with 
Prince M. and his wife, the Princess of S., own sister 
of the king. Gave her a copy of Mrs. Judson's 
Burman Catechism, with which she was much 
pleased. They both appear to be somewhat attached 
to me, and say, do not return to Kangoon ; but, when 
your wife arrives, call her to Ava. 

"November 12. — • Spent the whole forenoon with 
Prince M. and his wife. Made a fuller disclosure 
6 



122 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



than ever before of the nature of the christian 
religion, the object of christians in sending me to 
this country, my former repulse at court, and the 
reason of it, our exposure to persecution in Rangoon, 
the affair of Moung Shwa-Gnong, &c. &c. They 
entered into my views and feelings with considerable 
interest; but both said decidedly, that, though the 
king would not himself persecute any one on ac- 
count of religion, he would not give any order 
exempting from persecution ; but would leave his 
subjects, throughout the empire, to the regular 
administration of the local authorities. 

" After giving the prince a succinct account of my 
religious experience, I ventured to warn him of his 
danger, and urged him to make the christian religion 
his immediate personal concern. He appeared, for 
a moment, to feel the force of what I said : but soon 
replied, ' I am yet young, only twenty-eight, I am 
desirous of studying all the foreign arts and sciences. 
My mind will then be enlarged, and I shall be capa- 
ble of judging whether the christian religion be true 
or not.' c But suppose your highness changes worlds 
in the meantime V His countenance again fell. 'It 
is true/ said he, 'I know not when I shall die.' I 
suggested that it would be well to pray to God for 
light, which, if obtained, would enable him at once 
to distinguish between truth and falsehood ; and so 
we parted. O, Fountain of light ; shed down one 
ray into the mind of this amiable prince, that he 
may become a patron of thine infant cause, and 
inherit an eternal crown." 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



123 



In accompanying Dr. Price to Ava, Mr. Judson 
hoped to be able to introduce the christian religion 
to the consideration of the king and his surrounding 
magnates ; and things now looked favorable for ac- 
complishing this desirable object. Hoping to locate 
himself there permanently, he was anxious to build 
a house suitable alike for present and future accom- 
modations ; and signifying as much to the king, his 
golden majesty gave him a lot, but afterward re- 
voked the grant. While negotiating on this matter, 
Mr. Judson had an interview with him, on the 25th 
of December, of which we have the following 
account : 

" The king appeared to be attracted by our num- 
ber, and came toward us ; but his conversation was 
directed chiefly to me. He again inquired about 
the Burmans who had embraced my religion. 'Are 
they real Burmans ? Do they dress like other Bur- 
mans?' &c. I had occasion to remark, that I 
preached every Sunday. 'What, in Burman?' 
Yes. 8 Let us hear how you preach.' I hesitated. 
An atwenwoon repeated the order. I began with a 
form of worship, which first ascribes glory to God, 
and then declares the commands of the law and the 
Gospel; after which, I stopped. 4 Go on,' said 
another atwenwoon. The whole court was pro- 
foundly silent. I proceeded with a few sentences 
declarative of the perfections of God, when his 
majesty's curiosity was satisfied, and he interrupted 
me. In the course of subsequent conversation, he 



124 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



asked what I had to say of Gaudama. I replied, 
that we all knew he was son of king Thog-dau-dah- 
nah; that we regarded him as a wise man and a 
great teacher, "but did not call him God. 'That is 
right,' said Moung Iv. E\, an atwenwoon who had 
not hitherto appeared very friendly to me. And he 
proceeded to relate the substance of a long com- 
munication, which I had lately made to him in the 
privy council room, about God, and Christ, &c. 
And this he did, in a very clear and satisfactory 
manner, so that I had scarcely a single correction to 
make in his statement. Moung Z., encouraged by 
all this, really began to take the side of God, before 
his majesty, and said, 'Nearly, all the world, your 
majesty, believe in an eternal God; except Burmah 
and Siam, these little spots ! ' His majesty remained 
silent ; and after some other desultory inquiries, he 
abruptly rose and retired." 

Having, at length, secured a lot, which was about 
a mile from the palace, Mr. Juclson went to a woon- 
gyee to pay for it, and making known his errand, 
was thus addressed: "Understand, teacher, that we 
do not give you the entire owning of this ground. 
"We take no recompense, lest it become American 
territory ! We give it to you for your present resi- 
dence only ; and when you go away, shall take it 
again." Mr. Judson gave him to understand that, 
when he himself went away, the persons who fur- 
nished funds for building the house, would wish to 
place another teacher in it ; to which intimation, the 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



125 



woongyee replied : " Yerj well ; let him also oc- 
cupy the place ; but when he dies, or when there is 
no teacher, we will take it." To these terms assent 
was given, and the bargain closed. Mr. Judson 
thinks the precaution of the woongyee, was owing 
to the recollection of some manoeuvres of the early 
English settlers in Bengal. 

On the 18th of January, 1823, Mr. Judson re- 
moved to Sagaing, opposite Ava, into a house built 
by Dr. Price, on the precincts of Prince M. He 
was, at this date, again suffering with the fever and 
ague, and had hoped that a change of air attend- 
ing the change of location, would benefit his health, 
which proved to be the case. 

Pom' days later, having sufficiently gained the end 
for which he had visited Ava, and being about to 
return to Kangoon, he called on Prince M. to take 
leave of him ; and was urged to make his absence 
from Ava as short as possible, and to bring back the 
whole scriptures, and translate them, adding that he 
wished to read all of them. 

Two or three days afterward, Mr. Judson went to 
take leave of the king. He was accompanied by 
the collector at Kangoon, who had arrived in town 
the previous evening. " We sat," writes Mr. Judson, 
a few moments conversing together. 6 What are you 
talking about?' said his majesty. 'He is speaking 
of his return to Rangoon, replied Mr. L. ' What 
does he return for ? Let them not return. Let them 
both, (that is brother Price and myself,) stay to- 
gether. If one goes away, the other must remain 



126 



THE MISSIONARY LABOKS 



alone, and will be unhappy.' ' He wishes to go for 
a short time only,' replied Mr. L. 4 to bring his wife, 
the female teacher, and his goods, not having brought 
any thing with him this time ; and he will return 
soon.' His majesty looked at me, ' Will you then 
come again ? ' I replied in the affirmative. 4 When 
you come again, is it your intention to remain 
permanently, or will you go back and forth, as 
foreigners commonly do?' 'When I come again, 
it is my intention to remain permanently.' - Yery 
well,' said his majesty, and withdrew into his inner 
apartment." 

Leaving Dr. Price in high favor at the Burman 
court, Mr. Judson embarked for Rangoon on the 
25th of January, and arrived there on the 2d of 
February. On the 11th of the latter month, he 
wrote to Dr. Baldwin, stating that his reception at 
Ava, as a teacher of Christianity, had been very 
different from the previous one, and that he was 
greatly encouraged by the liberal spirit that seemed 
to prevail in the royal family. "It is distinctly 
understood," he says, " by the king and by all who 
have any knowledge of me at all, that I am a thah- 
thah-nah-pyos-tsayah, that is, a religion-propagating 
teacher ; and yet I have been smiled upon and lis- 
tened to, and, by order of the king himself, have 
received from the chief public minister of state, the 
grant of a small piece of ground for the express 
purpose of building a kyoung — a house appropri- 
ated to sacred characters. It is my intention, there- 
fore, to return thither as soon as Mrs. J. arrives, who, 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSOX. 



I hear, has gone on to America. And, in the mean 
time. I shall occupy myself in finishing the transla- 
tion of the Xew Testament, a work which I left un- 
finished with great reluctance, and which I rejoice to 
have leisure to reasume." 

"While the state of things was so promising under 
the shadow of the throne, clouds were gathering over 
the station at Eangoon. During Mr. Judsons ab- 
sence, an intolerant viceroy had succeeded Mya- day- 
men, and harassing extortions and cruel persecutions 
had scattered the precious flock of disciples. A por- 
tion of them, however, soon collected at the mission- 
house, and Mr. Judson resumed his labors. Yet 
these were necessarily very private : and being thus 
restricted in his public efforts, he devoted much of 
his time to translating the Xew Testament. This im- 
portant work he completed the following June. As 
an introduction, he prepared an epitome of the Old 
Testament in twelve sections: containing a compend 
of Scripture history from the creation of man to the 
advent of the Saviour, and an abstract of prophecies 
relating to the latter and his kingdom. The disci- 
ples received this work with the eagerness of hungry 
souls ; while to its author it served as a text-book by 
which he could communicate systematically much 
valuable information on the history, types, and proph- 
ecies of the Old Testament." 

Touching other topics of interest connected with 
the mission, Mr. Judson wrote as follows to Dr. 
Sharp, under date of August oth, 1S23 : 



128 



MISSIONAEY LABOES 



" I have heard but little from Ava since I left. 
Prince M. sometimes inquires for me, and wishes 
to hear more about the christian religion. Brother 
Price is building a small brick house on the opposite 
side of the river, the king having given him bricks. 
I expect to remove as soon as Mrs. Judson returns, 
from whom I have not, however, received a word of 
intelligence for nearly ten months. Brother Hough 
has not yet been able to get types from Bengal ; no 
printing, therefore, has been done since his return. 

" I hope it will not be long before the Gospel and 
Epistles of John are printed. They have been ready 
for the press above a year, and have been so thor- 
oughly and repeatedly revised, that I natter myself 
that subsequent translators will not find it necessary 
to make many alterations. Indeed, all the Gospels 
and the Acts are in a tolerable state ; the Epistles 
are still deficient. But I never read a chapter with- 
out a pencil in hand, and Griesbach and Parkhurst 
at my elbow ; and it will be an object with me 
through life, to bring the translation into such a 
state, that it may be a standard work." 



CHAPTER XI. 



Mrs. Judson returns to Burmah — Mr. and Mrs. Wade accompany Her — Mr. 
and Mrs. Judson go to Ava — Coldness of their Reception — Formal Removal 
of the Seat of Government from Amarapura — War with the Bengal Govern- 
ment — Bombardment of Rangoon, and Persecution of the Missionaries there^ 
Messrs. Hough and Wade go to Calcutta. 

On the 5th of December, 1823, Mr. Judson greeted 
his heroic companion once more on the shores of their 
adopted land. She had been absent more than two 
years and a quarter; bnt she had not been idle. 
Although her visit to the land of her birth was made 
in a feeble state, and her health was not fully re- 
stored till just before her reembarkation for the east, 
yet during the nine months passed in America, she 
performed a vast amount of labor, and exerted an 
incalculable degree of influence for the cause so near 
her heart. She prepared a history of the Burman 
mission, which was widely read, and highly com- 
mended by journalists of the most critical acumen, 
in England as well as in this country ; attended the 

fourth meeting of the Triennial Convention, held at 
6* 



130 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Washington in May, 1823; visited many of the 
large cities, north and south ; and wherever she went, 
in whatever circle mingled, she told the sad story 
of Bnrman idolatry and degradation, and excited 
fresh interest among christians of almost every 
denomination, in behalf of the perishing millions 
of India. 

Returning to Rangoon with spirits thoroughly re- 
invigorated, she reentered the field with a hopeful 
heart and inspiring enthusiasm, and seemed like an 
angel of light amid the Cimmerian darkness of pagan- 
ism. Anxious to do good and fearless of danger, she 
pressed forward in her high vocation, happily uncon- 
scious of the hardships before her, and of the wine- 
press of sorrow she was soon to tread. 

At the meeting of the convention held at Wash- 
ington, and before referred to, Messrs. Jonathan 
Wade and George D. Boardman presented them- 
selves as candidates for missionary appointment, 
and the former was soon designated by the Board. 
He and his wife sailed with Mrs. Judson on the 
22d of June, 1823, and the three arrived at Rangoon 
together. 

With the mission thus reinforced, it was decided 
that there should be a division of labor ; that Messrs. 
Hough and Wade should remain at Rangoon, and 
Mr. and Mrs. Judson would go to Ava, and attempt 
to establish a mission beneath the golden eye. The 
latter were encouraged to make this movement, 
from the favor with which Mr. Judson had been re- 
ceived by the king and his courtiers, on his previous 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



131 



visit, and from the promising auspices attendant 
on the professional success of Dr. Price. 

Mr. and Mrs. Juclson were six weeks in passing up 
the river. They frequently left the boat, on arriving 
at a village, and walked through the streets, on which 
occasions hundreds flocked around them, to behold 
the first foreign female that ever ascended the Irra- 
waddy. Some of the least civil and most inquisitive 
would run some distance ahead, then halt and wheel 
round, in order to have a " long look " at the strange 
woman in her novel dress. 

Arriving at Ava, the missionaries found themselves 
without a home or comfortable shelter. Dr. Price, 
who met them on the way, proffered them a home, 
but his house was in an unfinished state, and the 
newly-built brick walls were so damp that Mrs. Jud- 
son was thrown into a fever in three hours after 
entering it. This circumstance forced Mr. and Mrs. 
Judson to betake themselves to the boat, where they 
concluded to remain until a building could be erected 
on the lot procured by Mr. Judson the preceding year. 

In two weeks, the contemplated house was finished, 
and ready for use. It contained three small rooms 
and a veranda, and was pleasantly situated on the 
margin of the river. There Mr. Judson immediately 
began to talk of the great and only true God, holding 
meetings every evening, and preaching regularly on 
the Sabbath. At the same time, his wife, in order to 
make herself useful, opened a school for such Bur- 
man girls as could be persuaded to receive instruc- 
tion. It was commenced with only three pupils ; 



132 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



these she taught not only to read, but to sew, and to 
do other kinds of domestic labor. Two of them were 
sisters, and she named them Mary and Abby Hassel- 
tine. They were given to her by their father, the 
mother being deranged, and consequently unable to 
take care of them. 

This plan of establishing schools for the discipline 
of heathen children, has been almost universally 
adopted by Mrs. Judson's successors in the field of 
missions, and "the little one " which she originated, 
has "become a thousand.' 7 We shall haye occasion 
to show that these schools are potent agencies for 
enlarging and strengthening native churches. 

The reception of Mr. and Mrs. Judson at Ava was 
not so promising as they had had reason to anticipate. 
True, an old friend, the widowed wife of a former 
viceroy of Rangoon, met Mrs. Judson at the boat, 
on her arrival, and seemed much pleased to see her ; 
and two or three other persons exhibited toward both 
herself and husband, decided expressions of friend- 
ship ; but, as a whole, the appearance of things at 
the very beginning wore an unfavorable aspect. All 
the atwenwoons with whom Mr. Judson had been 
formerly acquainted, were now turned out of office, 
and with the newly appointed ones he had neither 
acquaintance nor interest. Various causes, he says, 
in a letter addressed to Dr. Baldwin, and dated at 
Ava, February 19th, 1824, "have conspired to ren- 
der the king somewhat disaffected toward foreigners. 
Brother Price has made but little advance in royal 
favor. On my appearing at the palace, I found that 



OF ADOXIRAM JUDSON. 



133 



a year had made great changes. My old friends 
and advocates before the king, were missing ; very 
few recognized me. At length his majesty came 
forward, just spoke to me, and accepted a small 
present. But I have seen him twice since, without 
obtaining a word or look. The only persons who 
have received me with real cordiality are Prince 
M. and his wife ; but even they are not much dis- 
posed to converse on religion." 

In the same commimication, Mr. Judson refers to 
the fact, that rumors of war with the English govern- 
ment were in circulation ; and to this circumstance, 
it is most likely, was owing the wonderful frigidity 
of the monarch. After speaking of the dangers and 
vicissitudes to which the missionaries would be ex- 
posed, should the rumors have a good foundation, 
and the English extend their invasion to the capital, 
he adds : "But, in all cases, we trust we have a few 
friends at home, who bear us in their hearts at a 
throne of grace ; and a still dearer and greater Friend 
at the right hand of the divine Presence, in heaven, 
who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities, 
and will graciously succor us in the time of trial, and 
make us come off conquerors at last. But, my dear 
and venerable friend and brother, you are, from 
long experience, more able than I am, to taste the 
sweetness of this precious truth ; and your advanced 
age, and the grace of Christ enable you to hope that 
you will ere long be able to adopt the triumphant 
language of the apostle Paul. Pray for me, that I 
may be counted worthy to hold out to the end, and 



134 THE MISSIONARY LABORS 

finally meet with you before the throne, and handle 
a harp of gold in the dear Kedeemer's praise." 

How humble the spirit that here finds utterance ; 
and how appropriate the request, just at this period, 
for remembrance in the closet! The devoted mis- 
sionary seems to have a premonition of the sufferings 
that await him, and, like the Saviour in the garden 
of Gethsemane, is, on that account, exceedingly 
sorrowful. 

But press on, O man of God! Let thy gar- 
ments be dyed at Ava, and dye thou the sand-path 
to Amarapura, and the prison doors that yawn 
beyond! Thou shalt live through all, and God, by 
his superabounding grace, shall establish for thee a 
name above every contemporary's in the catalogue 
of christian heroes. 

A short time after the missionaries had established 
themselves at Ava, the government was formally re- 
moved thither from Amarapura. " In order to make 
the transfer of the golden presence from one city to 
the other as striking and impressive as possible," the 
king, who had been at Ava for two years, super- 
intending the new palace, went up to Amarapura, 
accompanied by his family, and all else at his com- 
mand that contributed to the exhibition of royal 
opulence, majesty, and hauteur. " The ceremony 
was one of unusual splendor and magnificence, and 
presented a scene well calculated to fill the imagina- 
tion with the sublimest conceptions of oriental gran- 
deur and wealth. There were the great officers of 
state, the woongyees and atwenwoons, in their robes 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSON, 



135 



of office, the saupwars of conquered provinces, with 
their troops of attendants, heroes who had been dis- 
tinguished in the wars of the empire, and people of 
every degree, to the number of hundreds of thou- 
sands, who had assembled to do homage to the stern 
monarch of the land and sea, the master of life and 
death, and lord of the celestial elephant. Shouts 
and acclamations rent the air, as the imperial retinue 
approached the gates of the golden city. At the 
head of the procession, and the most conspicuous 
and beautiful object which it presented, came the 
white elephant, with his numerous suite, an object of 
Burman adoration, covered with jewels and orna- 
ments of gold ; next were seen the king and queen 
in plain attire, the only persons in all the throng who 
appeared unadorned ; following these were the great 
counselors, both public and private, and the viceroys 
of provinces and cities, who had come with their 
retinues from the remotest confines of the empire, to 
offer fealty to the monarch, and to swell the grandeur 
of the festival. 

" Amidst this splendid array of all the insignia of 
power and majesty, the king took possession of the 
new palace, and reestablished the imperial govern- 
ment in its ancient seat at Ava. The missionaries, 
with a few European residents at the capital, gazed 
with wonder upon this unwonted display of grotesque 
magnificence, made to gratify the pride of the Bur- 
man monarch. They were not noticed by the royal 
pair, and, although Mr. Judson occasionally visited 
the palace, yet no inquiry was ever made for the 



136 THE M1SSI0NAET LABORS 



female teacher whom the queen had formerly ex- 
pressed her desire to see in her foreign dress. It 
was not long before an order was issued that no 
European should enter the palace, and in a few days 
afterward, the tidings of the approaching war, which 
had hitherto been brought only in uncertain rumors, 
were fully confirmed by intelligence that an English 
fleet had arrived in the river, and that Rangoon had 
already fallen into their hands." — Gammell's His- 
tory of American Baptist Missions. 

This war originated in old and festering feuds on 
the frontier of Chittagong. The Burman govern- 
ment was jealous of the expansion of English do- 
minion, and ambitious to extend its own into Bengal. 
Such was the condition of things between the two 
powers, when the king heard it alleged that some of 
his obnoxious subjects, who had escaped to Chitta- 
gong, had been protected by the English crown; 
and he was so enraged that he forthwith raised 
thirty thousand men, and put them under the com- 
mand of a famous warrior named Bandula. "With 
this army, it was confidently, though foolishly, ex- 
pected the English could be brought to terms. 

Learning the intentions of the Burman monarch, 
and anticipating the invasion by his great general, 
the British authorities commenced hostilities by the 
bombardment of Rangoon. The irruption was made 
by Sir Archibald Campbell, whose forces numbered 
about six thousand, and were composed of European 
troops and sepoys. 



OF ADOXIKAM JTJDSON. 



137 



As might be expected, these movements suspended 
the operations of the missionaries at Rangoon ; and 
not only so, but their lives were jeoparded, As 
soon as the English transports appeared in the river, 
(May 10th,) Messrs. Hough and Wade, and every 
other person 44 who wore a hat," were hurried, to 
prison ; and the two missionaries were bound to- 
gether by the legs with ropes, and strongly guarded. 
44 An horn' or two afterward," writes Mr. Wade, 44 the 
blacksmith came, bringing a rough, heavy chain. It 
consisted of three links, each about four inches in 
length, and pounded together so close as to com- 
pletely prevent it from bending any more than a 
straight bar of iron. This was designed for Mr. H. 
and myself He was first seated, his leg laid upon 
a block, the ring placed upon the ankle, and then 
pounded down close with heavy blows. The other 
ring was put upon my ankle in the same manner. 
Our situation afforded no convenience for lying down, 
and, of course, allowed us no sleep, or even rest. 

" The next day the guard of the prison was con- 
siderably strengthened, and enjoined strictly to keep 
us close ; all communication with our servants, and 
things without, was cut off. Shortly after, orders 
from the ray-woon were communicated to our 
guard through the grates of the prison, viz.* that the 
instant the shipping should open a fire upon the 
town, they were to massacre all the prisoners with- 
out hesitation. This blasted all our hopes. The 
guards immediately began sharpening their instru- 
ments of death with bricks, and brandishing them 



138 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



about our heads, to show with how much dexterity 
and pleasure they would execute their fatal orders. 
Upon the place which they intended for the scene 
of "butchery, a large quantity of sand was spread to 
receive the blood. Among the prisoners reigned 
the gloom and silence of death — the vast ocean of 
eternity seemed but a step before us. Mr. II. and 
myself threw ourselves down upon a matrass, ex- 
pecting never to rise again, and calmly waited to 
hear the first gun that should be fired upon the 
town, as the signal for our certain death. 

" In the meantime, an account of our real situa- 
tion, which we had used various means to conceal, 
reached the ears of our afflicted wives. Their feel- 
ings can be better conceived than expressed. Who 
can tell with what agony of soul they listened to 
hear the first gun, the messenger which would relate 
a tale, more sad and awful than death itself could 
relate. 

" At length the fleet arrived, and the attack com- 
menced. The first ball thrown into the town came 
with a tremendous noise directly over our heads. 
Our guards, filled with consternation and amaze- 
ment, seemingly unable to execute their murderous 
orders, slunk away into one corner of the prison, 
where they remained perfectly quiet, until a broad- 
side from the Lirley, which made the prison shake 
and tremble to its very foundations, so effectually 
frightened them, that, like children, they cried out 
through fear; and openly declared their intention 
of breaking open the door. They soon found means 



OF ADOXIKAM .TUDSON. 



139 



to break open the door : which being done, they 
all went ont, but took the precaution to secure the 
door again, by fastening it with rattans upon the 
outside." 

About an hour later, during the cessation of firing, 
forty or fifty armed and furious natives rushed into 
the prison. " TTe were instantly seized," continues 
Mr. Wade, " dragged out of the prison, our clothes 
torn from our bodies, and our arms drawn behind 
us with a cord, so tight that it was impossible to 
move them. I thought mine would have been cut 
entirely to the bone : indeed, we were treated just 
as they would treat criminals, whom they were about 
to lead to the place of execution. TTe were now put 
in front of several armed men, whose duty it was to 
goad us along with the points of their spears. After 
making an exhibition of us through almost every 
street in the town, we were at length brought to the 
Yongdau, or place where all causes are tried, and 
sentences are passed. Here sat the dispenser of life 
and death, surrounded by other officers of the town. 
He ordered us to be placed before him in a kneeling 
posture, with our faces to the ground ; to which we 
submitted in the most respectful manner. On one 
side of us was a noisy rabble, crying out all to- 
gether : 6 Let them be put to death ! ' The cries 
of the multitude prevailed. The executioner, who 
stood on one side with the knife in his hand, waiting 
the decision, was ordered to proceed." 

At this moment, Mr. Hough begged to be allowed 
to go on board the frigate which bore the English flag, 



HO 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



that lie might persuade the invaders not to resume 
the discharge of arms. Just at that moment, the 
roar of cannon was heard, and the officers, pale with 
affright, fled a short distance and hid themselves 
under the banks of a tank. The missionaries thus 
unceremoniously left on their knees, with their necks 
bared, ready for the executioner's stroke, were per- 
mitted to rise. In the midst of the firing, they 
were soon hurried to the outskirts of the city, 
where Mr. Hough's proposal was renewed and 
accepted. 

As soon as he had started on his errand, Mr. Wade 
and the other prisoners were consigned to a wretched 
dungeon, and ordered to be put to death, in case Mr. 
Hough failed to succeed. The English landed the 
next morning ; when a party of Burmans, who had 
early collected around the dungeon, seeing the "red 
coats " approaching, fled for life ; and the prisoners, 
after two days' and three nights' suffering in chains, 
were set at liberty. 

During this time ? Mrs. Hough and Mrs. Wade, 
though not formally arrested, were greatly perse- 
cuted, and suffered extremely from anxiety ; and the 
converts were obliged to scatter and conceal them- 
selves, all fleeing to the jungle, except Moung Shwa- 
ba. He remained at the mission-house, with the 
female missionaries, till all three were obliged, in the 
disguise of Burmans, to seek a hiding-place from 
the blood-thirsty rabble. But for the protection 
of a bamboo shed, they would probably have been 
slain. 



OF ADONIKAM JUDSOjST. 



141 



It was a providential deliverance, on all sides, and 
happy was the meeting of husbands and wives. " I 
need not attempt to describe the feelings produced 
by meeting again, after we had passed through so 
many and so great dangers ; but, at length, we found 
ourselves again all together, well, and beyond the 
power of barbarous and unmerciful Burmans. For 
my own part, I was rendered almost delirious by so 
sudden a transition from the deepest distress to the 
highest pitch of joy. In reflecting upon those scenes 
of danger through which we all passed, and the nar- 
row escapes which were afforded, when hope seemed 
entirely gone, L cannot help thinking, that our deliv- 
erance was almost miraculous. More than once, the 
danger which threatened us was so near, that I could 
only say : 6 Lord, save now, or we perish.' God was 
my only hope ; and this hope did not fail me, even 
in the greatest extremity. O how invaluable is the 
hope of the gospel ! which, like an anchor to the 
soul, sure and steadfast, enters into that which is 
within the vail ! And, standing upon the very border 
of eternity, as we viewed ourselves, how insignificant 
appeared all the objects which so much attract us in 
this world ; how vast the concerns of a never-ending 
duration ; and how invaluable a well-grounded hope 
in the merits of Him, whose name is the only one 
given under heaven, and among men, whereby we 
must be saved ! " 

Rangoon was now deserted by the natives ; the 
means of subsistence were almost entirely cut off; 
the rainy season was setting in, and a raging and 



142 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



extremely fatal fever was spreading among the Eu- 
ropean troops. Under these circumstances, Messrs. 
Hongh and Wade decided to remove to Calcutta, and 
there remain until the close of the war. While 
there, they made considerable progress in the Bur- 
man language, and published a dictionary in that 
dialect, compiled principally from the labors of 
Messrs. Judson, Colman, Carey, and the associates 
of the latter. 



CHAPTEE XII. 



Movements at Ava, on the Fall of Rangoon — Arrest, Examination, and Discharge 
of Mr. Judson and Dr. Price — Their confinement and sufferings in the Death 
Prison — Persecution, Trials, and Heroic Conduct of Mrs. Judson. 

The intelligence that Rangoon had fallen, was 
received at Ava on the 23d of May, eleven days 
after it had taken place: and, the next morning, 
writes Dr. Price, "twenty-five gold boats, each 
mounting a small piece of artillery, and well pro- 
vided with muskets, started with orders to raise the 
whole country, if necessary, to drive out the insid- 
ious banditti, who had come thus unawares upon an 
unoffending town. The current of feeling was now 
so strong against the English residents, that Mr. 
Gouger* sent over to me to inquire, if it would not 
be more safe for him to remove to Sagaing, and put 
up with me out of the way of the popular fury. I 
informed him I should be very happy to entertain 
him at any other time ; but, at present, I thought 



*A young English gentleman, then engaged in mercantile business, 
at Ava. 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



our herding together would only excite suspicion, 
and hasten the ruin of us both." 

A few days later, Messrs. Judson and Price were 
summoned to the secret council chamber, where they 
were questioned separately in regard to their coun- 
try, avocation, acquaintance with certain English- 
men, &c. When the examination had closed, they 
were allowed to return to their houses ; but with the 
understanding that they should stand ready for a 
fresh summons, should such a step be deemed expe- 
dient. Three or four Englishmen, an Armenian, and 
a Greek, who had been previously examined, being 
supposed to be in the league with the army at Ran- 
goon, were remanded to confinement, and were kept 
in separate guard-rooms adjoining the chamber 
where they were examined. 

It appears that the Burmans were so ignorant of 
the relations in which the Americans and English 
stood to each other, as to suppose the former were 
subjects of the latter. Indeed, they thought all 
white men, but the French, stood in the same position 
to the British crown; and that France, even, after 
the overthrow of ISTapoleon, lost her national sove- 
reignty. As Americans and Englishmen speak the 
same language, and are most naturally confounded, 
it is not surprising that the ignorant and prejudiced 
Burmans were somewhat severe in their treatment of 
the missionaries. 

"On the 8th of June," writes Dr. Price, "an 
order was given ' to keep safe all the foreigners.' On 



OF ADOXIEAM JTOSOX. 115 

this very morning I had unwittingly resolved to 
visit, once more, our friend, Prince 1£ On my way 
I heard a friendly voice calling out to me ; when 
inirning aside, I found it to be no other than my first 
and oldest friend, Moung Yay, the keeper of the 
king's wardrobe. He just gave me a hint of my 
danger, and then hurried away. Darkly lowering 
seemed my prospect, yet I pushed on to the house of 
Prince M.; but all his kind soothing could not dissi- 
pate the cloud which hung like night upon me. 
'While I was sitting here, the five white men were 
taken from the king's guard-room, stripped of all 
their articles of clothing, except the shirt and panta- 
loons, dragged out to the loots, or house of lords, 
thence hurried forward to the court house in the 
greatest imaginable suspense, and delivered over to 
the keeper of the king's prison, called, by way of 
distinction, 'Stick at nothing, 5 or 'Dread nought.' 
Here they were each honored with three pairs of 
chains, and strung on a pole together. Mr. J. was 
just about preparing for dinner when a number of 
people entered his ground. On asking two or three 
women, (who were hastily mounting his veranda.) 
what they wanted, they replied that they had come 
to look on ; in a moment the veranda was thronged, 
and a rough voice called out for the teacher. Mr. J. 
came forward, and, without any warning, was imme- 
diately siezed, thrown on the ground, and his aims 
tied with all the force the barbarian was capable of. 
Mrs. J. came forward, in agony better to be con- 
ceived than described, and offered to give rnonev to 
7 



H6 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



have the rope eased off her husband. But the 
wretch, instead of listening to the grief-impassioned 
request, cried out, ' She is also a white foreigner : tie 
her too.' For a moment, Mr. J.'s own exquisite 
torment was forgotten in the heart-rending apprehen- 
sion, that Mrs. J. was about to undergo the same 
cruel indignity. The assurance, however, that this 
was not the case, softened the pain occasioned by 
the violence offered in dragging him roughly away 
toward the town, so tightly bound that he could not 
half draw his breath. At a quarter of a mile's dis- 
tance, he was again thrown down in the street, the 
cords drawn more tightly, with repeated strokes of 
the knee on his back, so as almost to induce faint- 
ing, and money demanded in order to their being 
loosened. 

"A christian native who had followed at a dis- 
tance, now came forward and offered to go back for 
the money ; but, before his return, the anguish en- 
dured was so great, that Mr. J. was obliged to 
appeal to the numerous bystanders. 'Is there no 
one who knows me ; is there no one who will be my 
security for the money, no one who pities me? I 
am a priest, and, though a foreign one, deserve not 
such indignity, such torture.' But none stepped 
forward, and the cruel monster persisted in tighten- 
ing the cords until the arrival of Moung Ing with 
ten ticals of pure silver, when his amis were some- 
what relieved, so as to allow a more free respiration, 
and he was again hurried forward a distance of 
nearly two miles to the prison-house, and there, after 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



147 



being fettered, strung on the same bamboo with the 
preceding five unhappy men. 

" In the meantime, I had left the house of Prince 
M., at three o'clock in the afternoon, having just 
missed the horrid sight of Mr. J.'s agony, and had 
reached the river side with a heavy heart, which was 
not at all lightened by a black look I there received 
from the chief man of the golden navy, who had, on 
all previous occasions, met me with a smile. I 
passed over to Sagaing, fully impressed with the idea 
that something dreadful was approaching, though I 
knew not what. Having arrived at home, the sight 
of my clear wife and child was painful in the ex- 
treme. I dared communicate nothing of my appre- 
hensions ; but, after a slight attempt to cline, hurried 
to the top of my house and endeavored alone to 
compose myself; but all in vain. At dusk I was 
joined by Mrs. P. and child ; we had taken only a 
few turns, when a dreadful noise was heard below. 
Knowing too well the cause of the uproar, I hastened 
down, and was informed that more than fifty men 
were preparing to surround and take possession of 
my house. My scattered senses seemed to collect of 
themselves ; I saw the long dreaded hour had ar- 
rived, and I was myself again — yea, more ; I was, 
or seemed to myself to be, supernaturally assisted ; I 
looked down on the treacherous breach of all for- 
merly plighted royal faith ; I felt a martyr, and deter- 
mined to shrink from nothing which was before me. 
In answer to loud demands from without, I opened 
the door, was ordered immediately to sit down on 



148 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



the floor, to give an inventory of my effects, to shut 
and bar the doors and windows, and follow them. 
Having committed all to the care of my wife, who, 
by this time, had fonnd her way to me, I commended 
her to our common Protector, and took my leave of 
my newly built mansion, never expecting to enter it 
more. My conductors attempted, at first, to extort 
money, by threatening to tie my arms ; but finding 
me ready to submit to any thing, they betrayed their 
want of any warrant to use me roughly ; and chang- 
ing their line of conduct, immediately began to treat 
me uncommonly well, and actually carried an um- 
brella over me to guard me from the rain, all the 
way to the government house. Arrived here, the 
great man said I was called for to be asked some 
questions, he supposed ; the real cause he knew not ; 
but we must repair to the court house. 

" Hand in hand we proceeded to the young dau, 
or court house, where I was delivered over to the 
Ava town clerk, and heard the laconic order, c P. and 
J. catch, and put in prison.' My heart sunk at the 
appalling words ; still they seemed repeated ; again 
and again I repeated them to myself, till the town 
clerk roused me from my reverie, by diving into my 
pockets, and securing every thing movable about 
me. The head executioner now received a wink, 
which authorized him to seize me rather rudely by 
the shoulder, and caused me to descend without the 
trouble of seeking the stairs. I was now led at a 
quick pace across the street, ushered into a small 
compound or yard, and ordered to sit. I made 



OF ADONIEAM JTTDSON. 



149 



toward a bench; but was pushed off it. I then 
seated myself on a small stone slab, which I soon 
found was meant for another purpose. For, while 
undergoing an examination as to my name, place of 
abode, occupation, &c, a man with his hands full of 
irons, came forward, and rudely shoving me off the 
stone, seized one of my legs, and began knocking on 
one pair of fetters after another, until I thought he 
was never going to stop. 

" My heart now died within me. I looked around ; 
all was gloomy, and dark, and silent, except the dull 
clanking of chains. Four or five young women in 
a like predicament manifested some pity; but all 
else was savage, unfeeling complacency. My three 
chains were no sooner well fastened on, than I was 
ordered roughly to go in. A little bamboo door 
opened, and I rose to go toward it. But O, who 
can describe my sensations ! shackled like a common 
felon, in the care of hangmen, the offscouring of the 
country, turned like a dog into his kennel, my wife, 
my dear family, left to suffer alone all the rudeness 
such wretches are capable of. The worst, however, 
was yet to come ; for, making the best of my way 
up the high step, I was ushered into the grand 
apartment ; horror of horrors, what a sight ! never 
to my dying day shall I forget the scene; — a dim 
lamp in the midst, just making darkness visible, and 
discovering to my horrified gaze, sixty or seventy 
wretched objects, some in long rows made fast in 
the stocks, some strung on poles, some simply fet- 
tered ; but all sensible of a new accession of misery, 



150 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



in the approach of a new prisoner. Stupefied, I 
stopped to gaze till goaded on; I proceeded toward 
the further end, when I again halted. A new and 
unexpected sight met my eyes. Till now I had 
been kept in ignorance of the fate of my compan- 
ions ; a long row of white objects, stretched on the 
floor, in a most crowded situation, revealed to me, 
however, but too well, their sad case, and I was 
again urged forward. Poor old 11. wishing to retain 
the end of the bamboo, made way for me to be 
placed along side of Mr. J. ' We all hoped you 
would have escaped, you were so long coming,' was 
the first friendly salutation I had yet received.; but 
alas! it was made by friends whose sympathy was 
now unavailing. 

" Here, side by side, we were allowed the only 
gratification left, of condoling, in the Burman lan- 
guage, with each other. ^Kdw yon have" arrived 
and our number is complete, I suppose they will 
proceed to murder us,' was the first thing suggested ; 
and no one could say it was improbable. To prepare 
for a violent death, for immediate execution, was 
our consequent resolution. And now we began to 
feel our Strength, our Stronghold, our Deliverer, in 
this dark abode of misery and despair. ' He who has 
said, I will never leave you nor forsake you, mani- 
fested his gracious presence ; a calm sweet peace 
succeeded our hurried minds, and alternate prayer 
and repeating of hymns, soon brought our minds 
to a state of comparative gladness and joy. We 



OF ADONHtAH JTJDSON. 



151 



became lifted above our persecutors ; and the hymn 
containing the words — 

'Let men of spite against me join, 
They are the svord, the hand is thine ; ' 

was peculiarly applicable and refreshing. Now, ye 
scoffers, say -what you will, here is a triumph you 
can not attain. Religion ! O, the sweets of reli- 
gious communion with God ! ' Let them now, even 
now come,' we said ; 4 we are prepared for the worst 
you can do ; you can not deprive us of our hope in 
God, our sweet peace of mind.' Thus we whiled 
away the hours of the night. Nature shuddered, 
but the soul was unshaken : our confidence was in 
the Hock of Ages. "We were not left, however, 
without many a pang ; for ever and anon the situa- 
tion of our dear families presented itself to us, and 
the thought of what they might even now be suffer- 
ing on our account, and in their own persons, was 
like racks and tortures to our hearts. Still we re- 
flected, they too are in the hands of a merciful God ; 
they too may be now enjoying a portion of that sup- 
port which we ourselves feel, and we concluded to 
commit them to his Almighty keeping, and our 
minds were much relieved. The night was rainy, 
and we were much incommoded by the circum- 
stance ; the stench of the place was almost intoler- 
able ; we had no bed but the greasy, filthy floor of 
our prison ; and, unable to move our bodies for the 
bamboo, which passed between our legs, our situa- 
tion became exceedingly distressing, when at length 



152 THE MISSIONARY LAUOES 

the morning dawned upon our sleepless eyes. For 
a long time we were doubtful of the daylight. The 
rain continued to descend in torrents, and no win- 
dow or door was there to the room. At length the 
bamboo wicket was opened, and a figure approached 
us, of a most terrific appearance and a horrid coun- 
tenance. He jocularly saluted us, hoped we had 
slept well, and in reply to our repeated requests, 
said he would order us to be let out for five minutes. 
He was as good as his word. And now commences 
the history of our luxuries. First and foremost, to 
find ourselves again on our feet, to be able to move 
our limbs, shackled as they were. Ye who ride for 
pleasure, believe me when I assert, you never en- 
joyed an hour worthy to be compared with these 
few minutes ; and then to get out into the fresh air! 
the rain, the mud, we heeded not, our enjoyment 
was pure ; but alas ! like all things here below, soon 
to cease. Again we were turned in, and notwith- 
standing our remonstrances, again obliged to take 
our station as before. The arrival of our breakfast 
afforded another short interval of relief; but we 
were not allowed to communicate with our people 
who brought it, and hence still kept ignorant of the 
situation of our dear families. Our appetites being 
not very keen, were soon satisfied and, our dishes 
sent away, we relapsed into our former reflection, 
What is to be done with us ? The night was incon- 
venient to have us executed ; no doubt the day will 
be fixed on for the purpose. Every thing around 
us was alarming — we were in the worst prison, in 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



153 



the worst part of it, and most rigorously treated. 
Our crime, too, admitted of no advocate, the popu- 
lace even seemed to join in cursing us. Among 
our fellow-prisoners, few sympathized with us ; and 
it was the invariable custom of the country, that 
such as we should not be permitted to live. Many 
groans were uttered, and many tears shed, before 

this weary day passed off. Poor old thought it 

a very hard case he should have served the king of 
Burmah forty years, and be rewarded thus at last. 

"Mr. J., Mr. G., and myself spent the day in as 
composed a frame as could be expected, considering 
our noisy company, want of rest, and uneasy sit- 
uation. The night passed off tolerably well ; ' tired 
nature's sweet restorer ' cast in over us the mantle of 
a temporary oblivion. 

" The next morning, Mr. J. was called out early, 
by some man of consequence, who wanted to know 
if he meant to stay inside forever ; asked why he 
had not applied with a proper present, to procure 
the liberty of the yard — which would have saved 
him the trouble of calling at this time to offer him 
the choice of paying three hundred ticals, (four hun- 
dred S. K.) or of being still more rigorously treated. 
Mr. J. told him it was an exorbitant demand ; that 
he was a priest, and ought not to be compelled to 
pay money at all. On which the man, who proved 
to be the town clerk, assumed an air of high author- 
ity ; said he would go down to his house and see for 
himself whether he had the ability of paying or not ; 

ordered him immediately to give in a true account 
7* 



154: 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



of all his effects, and by no means to leave out an 
article; at the same time using very abusive and 
threatening language. This unauthorized conduct 
excited the indignation of a woman present, (Ma 
Cathai,) who sharply interposed, and the examina- 
tion was stopped. I was then called out, and the 
same demand was repeated, to which I made the 
same reply. Highly exasperated, he called for the 
old jailor, and ordered me back to be more tightly 
kept (kyat kyat 'tali.) Mr. J. was also ordered in, 
and a hint given, that if one hundred pieces were 
given, we should be let out of the close room. Mr. 
G. and Mr. R. were let out this morning, on the 
payment of about four hundred. 

" Just after breakfast, a meeting took place be- 
tween Mr. and Mrs. J., of such a nature as to affect 
even to sobbing our hardened keeper, who was also 
a fellow prisoner. We were now informed, for the 
first time, that immediately after Mr. J.'s departure, 
the house was surroimded with guards, everything in 
the yard broken or destroyed, or carried away, and 
at length she was obliged to suspect them of intend- 
ing the same thing in the house. She accordingly 
retired within, and having fastened all the doors, 
remained quietly to wait the event. Soon the de- 
mons appeared at the door, and ordered it to be 
opened, threatening to break it down. But not ob- 
taining their purpose, they seized on the cook and 
consumer, tied them by the feet, and hoisted them 
toward the ceiling. The cries of these poor wretches 
effected what the threats of the others could not ; 



OF ADONXRAM JTTDSON, 



155 



and to relieve her people, Mrs. J. opened a wicket 
and threw out to them six or seven handkerchiefs, 
on which they desisted from further violence, keep- 
ing np, nevertheless, a most deafening noise the 
whole night. In the morning, the head of the dis- 
trict came to see her, to whom she complained of the 
conduct of his people. On which he reprimanded 
them severely, ordered them to give hack the hand- 
kerchiefs, and in a day or two removed them entirely 
from the house : when Mrs, J", was left quite at liberty 
to go where she chose ; of which liberty we often, 
very often reaped the benefit; for, although her 
house was full two miles off, she almost daily walked 
this distance, to alleviate our miseries, and complain 
to the proper authority when the understrappers 
used us ill." 

During the first six or seven months of their im- 
prisonment, the missionaries, together with the other 
white prisoners, were subject to frequent and most 
outrageous extortions, as well as most cruel oppres- 
sion. " Sometimes sums of money were demanded, 
sometimes pieces of cloth, and handkerchiefs; at 
other times, an order would be issued, that the 
white foreigners should not speak to each other, or 
have any communication with their friends without. 
Then, again, the servants were forbidden to carry in 
their food without an extra fee." 

The sufferings of the prisoners, and her own trials 
and sorrows, are touchingly described by Mrs. Jud- 
son, in a letter addressed to her brother-in-law : 



156 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" The war,*' she says, " was now prosecuted with 
all the energy the Burmese government possessed, 
!N"ew troops were continually raised and sent down 
the river, and as frequently reports returned of their 
being all cut off. But that part of the Burmese 
army stationed in Arracan, under the command of 
Bandula, had been more successful. Three hundred 
prisoners, at one time, were sent to the capital, as an 
evidence of the victory that had been gained. The 
king began to think that none but Bandula under- 
stood the art of fighting with foreigners; conse- 
quently his majesty recalled him, with the design of 
his taking command of the army that had been sent 
to Rangoon. On his arrival at Ava, he was received 
at court in the most flattering manner, and was the 
recipient of every favor in the power of the king 
and queen to bestow. He was, in fact, while at 
Ava, the acting king. I was resolved to apply to 
him for the release of missionaries, though some 
members of government advised me not, lest he 9 
being reminded of their existence, should issue an 
immediate order for their execution. But it was my 
last hope, and, as it proved, my last application. 

" Your brother wrote a petition privately, stating 
every circumstance that would have a tendency to 
interest him in our behalf. With fear and trembling, 
I approached him, while surrounded by a crowd of 
flatterers ; and one of his secretaries took the peti- 
tion, and read it aloud. After hearing it, he spake 
to me in an obliging manner — asked several ques- 
tions relative to the teachers — said he would think 



OF ADONIEAM JUDS03T. 



157 



of the subject — and bade me come again. I ran to 
the prison to communicate the favorable reception to 
Mr. Judson ; and we both had sanguine hopes that 
his release was at hand. Eut the governor of the 
city expressed his amazement at my temerity, and 
said he doubted not it would be the means of 
destroying all the prisoners. In a day or two, 
however, I went again, and took a present of con- 
siderable value. Bandula was not at home ; but his 
lady, after ordering the present to be taken into 
another room, modestly informed me that she was 
ordered by her husband to make the following com- 
munication — that he was now very busily employed 
in making preparations for Rangoon ; but that when 
he had retaken that place, and expelled the English, 
he would return and release all the prisoners. 

" Thus again were all our hopes dashed ; and we 
felt that we could do nothing more, but sit clown and 
submit to our lot. From this time we gave up all 
idea of being released from prison, till the termina- 
tion of the war ; but 1 was still obliged to visit con- 
stantly some of the members of government, with 
little presents, particularly the governor of the city, 
for the purpose of making the situation of the pris- 
oners tolerable. I generally spent the greater part 
of every other day at the governor's house, giving 
him all the information relative to American man- 
ners, customs, government, (fee. He used to be so 
much gratified with my communications, as to feel 
greatly disappointed, if any occurrence prevented 
my spending the usual hours at his house. 



158 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" Some months after your brother's imprisonment, 
I was permitted to make a little bamboo room in the 
prison enclosures, where he could be much by him- 
self, and where I was sometimes allowed to spend 
two or three hours. It so happened that the two 
months he occupied this place, was the coldest part 
of the year, when he would have suffered much in 
the open shed he had previously occupied. After 
the birth of your little niece, I was unable to visit 
the prison and the governor as before, and found I 
had lost considerable influence, previously gained ; 
for he was not so forward to hear my petitions when 
any difficulty occurred, as he formerly had been. 
"When Maria was nearly two months old, her father 
one morning sent me word that he and all the white 
prisoners were put into the inner prison, in five pairs 
of fetters each, that his little room had been torn 
down, and his mat, pillow, &c, been taken by the 
jailers. This was to me a dreadful shock, as I 
thought at once it was only a prelude to greater 
evils. 

"I should have mentioned before this, the defeat 
of Bandula, his escape to Danooyboo, the complete 
destruction of his army, and the loss of ammunition, 
and the consternation this intelligence produced at 
court. The English army had left Rangoon, and 
were advancing toward Prome, when these severe 
measures were taken with the prisoners. 

"I went immediately to the governor's house. He 
was not at home ; but had ordered his wife to tell 
me, when I came, not to ask to have the additional 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



159 



fetters taken off, or the prisoners released; for it 
could not be done. I went to the prison-gate ; but 
was forbid to enter. All was as still as death — not 
a white face to be seen, or a vestige of Mr. J.'s little 
room remaining. I was determined to see the gov- 
ernor, and know the cause of this additional oppres- 
sion; and for this purpose, returned to town the same 
evening, at an hour I knew he would be at home. 
He was in his audience room, and, as I entered, 
looked up without speaking, but exhibited a mixture 
of shame and affected anger in his countenance. I 
began by saving, your lordship has hitherto treated 
us with the kindness of a father. Our obligations to 
you are very great. We have looked to you for pro- 
tection from oppression and cruelty. You have, in 
many instances, mitigated the sufferings of those 
unfortunate, though innocent beings, committed to 
your charge. You have promised me, particularly, 
that you would stand by me to the last, and though 
you should receive an order from the king, you 
would not put Mr. J. to death. What crime has he 
committed to deserve such additional punishment ? 
The old man's hard heart was melted ; for he wept 
like a child. ' I pity you, Tsa-yar-ga-dau ? (a name by 
which he always called me,) I knew you would make 
me feel ; I therefore forbade your application. But 
you must believe me when I say, I do not wish to 
increase the sufferings of the prisoners. When I am 
ordered to execute them, the least that I can do, is to 
put them out of sight. I will now tell you,' con- 
tinued he, 'what I have never told you before, that 



160 



THE MISSIONAEY LABOES 



three times I Lave received intimations from the 
queen's brother, to assassinate all the white prisoners 
privately ; but I would not do it. And I now repeat 
it, though I execute all the others, I will never exe- 
cute your husband. But I cannot release him from 
his present confinement, and you must not ask it.' 
I had never seen him manifest so much feeling, or so 
resolute in denying me a favor, which circumstance 
was an additional reason for thinking dreadful scenes 
were before us. 

" The situation of the prisoners was now distress- 
ing beyond descrij)tion. It was at the commence- 
ment of the hot season. There were above a hun- 
dred prisoners shut up in one room, without a breath 
of air excepting from the cracks in the boards. I 
sometimes obtained permission to go to the door for 
five minutes, when my heart sickened at the wretch- 
ed exhibition. The white prisoners, from incessant 
perspiration and loss of appetite, looked more like 
the dead than the living. I made daily applications 
to the governor, offering him money, which he 
refused ; but all that I gained, was permission for 
the foreigners to eat their food outside, and this 
continued but a short time. 

" It was at this period, that the death of Banclula 
was announced in the palace. The king heard it 
with silent amazement, and the queen, in eastern 
style, smote upon her breast, and cried, ama ! ama ! 
(alas, alas.) 

"After continuing in the inner prison for more 
than a month, your brother was taken with a fever ; 



OF ADOXERAAI JTDSON. 



161 



I felt assured lie would not live long, unless removed 
froni that noisome place. To effect this, and in order 
to be near the prison, I removed from our house, and 
put up a small bamboo room in the governor's en- 
closure, which was nearly opposite the prison-gate. 
Here I incessantly begged the governor to give me 
an order to take Mr. J. out of the large prison, and 
place him in a more comfortable situation ; and the 
old man, being worn out with my entreaties, at 
length gave me the order in an official form ; and 
also gave orders to the head jailer, to allow me to go 
in and out, all times of the day, to administer medi- 
cines, <kc. I now felt happy indeed, and had Mr. J. 
instantly removed into a little bamboo hovel, so low, 
that neither of us could stand upright — but a pal- 
ace, in comparison with the place he had left. 

" Notwithstanding the order the governor had 
given for my admittance into prison, it was with the 
greatest difficulty that I could persuade the under- 
jailer to open the gate. I used to carry Mr. J.'s food 
myself, for the sake of getting in, and would then 
remain an hour or two, unless driven out. We had 
been in this comfortable situation but two or three 
days, when one morning, having carried in Mr. J ud- 
son's breakfast, which, in consequence of fever, he 
was unable to take, I remained longer than usual, 
when the governor, in great haste, sent for me. I 
promised him to return as soon as I had ascertained 
the governor's will, he being much alarmed at this 
unusual message. I was very agreeably disappoint- 
ed, when the governor informed me, that he only 



162 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



wished to consult me about his watch, and seemed 
unusually pleasant and conversable. I found after- 
ward, that his only object was, to detain me until 
the dreadful scene, about to take place in the prison, 
was over. For when I left him to go to my room, 
one of the servants came running, and with a ghastly 
countenance informed me, that all the white prison- 
ers were carried away.".* 

* Letter to Elnathan Judson, M. D. See Memoir of Ann H. Jud- 
son, chapters sixteen and seventeen. We are mainly guided by the 
same communication, in our account of the missionaries' imprison- 
ment at Oung pen-la. 



CHAPTEE XIII. 



Mr. Judson and the other Prisoners taken to Oung-pen-la — Cause of their Re- 
moval — Mrs. Judson follows her Husband — Sufferings of the Judson Family — 
Progress of the English Army up the Irrawaddy — Messrs. Judson and Price 
taken from Prison to assist in Negotiations for Peace — Sickness of Mrs. 
Judson — War Closes — Dr. Price remains at Ava — His Death — Mr. and 
Mrs. Judson go to Rangoon. 

In 1825, after eleven months incarceration and suf- 
fering at Ava, Mr. Judson was seized by a jailor, 
roughly dragged from the prison, stripped almost 
naked, unchained, and, without hat or shoes, with a 
rope round his waist, was driven to the court house, 
where he met the other prisoners. Tied in pairs, and 
committed to the custody of an officer entitled the 
lamine woon, who rode on horseback in front, while 
a gang of slaves held the ropes attached to the bodies 
of the prisoners, and brought up the rear, the com- 
pany started for Oung-pen-la, via Amarapura. It 
was nearly noon, in the month of May, a sultry and 
oppressive season of the year in the climate of south- 
ern India, and Mr. Judson- had not proceeded a mile 
before his feet were blistered, and he was in excru- 
ciating pain. The skin was soon worn from the feet 
of all the prisoners, and the hot sand was now eating 



164 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



into the naked flesh. Bnt they were in charge of an 
inhuman officer, whose orders to the drivers were, to 
hurry the culprits along. 

Mr. Judson had a fever that morning, and partook 
of no refreshment ; hence, when he had gone about 
four miles, or a little more than half-way to Amara- 
pura, he became so faint that he would have fallen 
had he not received support by taking hold of the 
shoulder of Captain Laird, who was his yoke-fellow 
in ignominy and suffering. Though a much more 
robust man than Mr. Judson, he was able to ren- 
der assistance in this way only a short time. Fortu- 
nately, however, a servant of Mr. Gouger, an athletic 
Bengalee, now overtook the company, and, observ- 
ing Mr. Judson's weakness and distress, tore his head 
dress in two, and gave him half of it to envelope his 
feet ; Mr. Gouger received the other half. The ser- 
vant then gave Mr. Judson his shoulder, and bore 
nearly half his weight the last mile or two of the 
first day's journey. 

Before reaching Amarapura, one of the prisoners, 
a corpulent Greek, who was perfectly healthy when 
they started, fell down dead. This circumstance led 
the lamine woon, who had intended to drive the 
prisoners to Oimg-pen-la" that night, to halt on the 
way. They were taken under an old shed, at Ama- 
rapura, where, without a pillow or a shred of cover- 
ing, they rested their weary and bleeding limbs on 
the naked earth. But for the kindness of the lamine 
woon's wife, who was not wholly destitute of the 
traits of the true woman, and whose curiosity had 



OF ADONERAM JUDSON. 



165 



led her to visit the prisoners, they would probably 
have had nothing to eat that night. She kindly 
ordered some tamarinds and other refreshments, and 
they lay down to rest, no donbt, with the one con- 
soling reflection, that God had not wholly forsaken 
them, but had sent a friend to their succor, in a 
time of great need. Some rice, poorly prepared, 
was given them the next morning, and as every one 
of them was unable to walk, they were conveyed the 
rest of the way, four miles, in carts. 

The circumstance which led to their removal to 
Oung-pen-la, as they subsequently learned, was this : 
the pakah-woon was about to take command of a new 
army of fifty thousand men, raised to carry on the 
war with the English, and the prisoners were to be 
offered as a sacrifice in his presence, to honor the 
occasion. Just before the time for executing this 
diabolical plan, he fell into disgrace at the court of 
Ava, was accused of high treason, and executed im- 
mediately, without trial or the slightest examination. 
He had been suddenly raised from obscurity to the 
rank of woongyee, and being proud, ambitious, and 
sanguinary, it is likely the accusation brought against 
him was well founded, and that his doom was just. 
His execution was timely for the missionaries and 
their fellow prisoners, and it was no doubt regarded 
by the former as a providential escape from death, 
and an especial occasion for gratitude and thanks- 
giving to God. 

The morning after the prisoners left Ava, Mrs. 
Judson obtained a government pass, and with her 



166 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



daughter three months old, the two adopted Burman 
girls before mentioned, and a Bengalee servant, she 
passed up the Irrawaddy in quest of her husband. 
She had accidentally heard, the night previous, that 
the prisoners had been taken before the lamine woon 
at Amarapura, and were to be driven to some place 
farther off. Anxious to reach the government house 
before the prisoners should leave Amarapura, when 
within two miles of that place, she left the boat and 
hurried on in a cart. Arriving at the court house, 
she learned that the prisoners had departed two 
hours previous, and, with a disappointed heart, she 
was obliged to charter another cart, and pursue her 
solitary way four miles farther over burning sand 
and beneath a scorching sun. 

Arriving at Oung-pen-la, she soon found her way 
to the prison yard, where she met Mr. Judson, who 
was " almost dead with suffering and fatigue," but 
so conscious of the wretchedness of the place, as to 
salute her with the assurance that she could not live 
there. 

The prison at Oung-pen-la was in a dilapidated 
and miserable condition; but some slight repairs 
were immediately made, a large shed was put up 
in front, and a new fence built ; still the place was 
sadly deficient in the features of comfort, and soon 
became the scene of sufferings and trials, at the 
contemplation of which humanity weeps. 

The fever, which Mr. Judson had when he left 
Ava, did not leave him for some time; and so 
mangled were his feet that he could not stand, and 



OF ADOXIRAM JUDSON. 



167 



could scarcely move for several days. Under these 
circumstances he needed the utmost care and almost 
incessant attention, which was more than Mrs. Jud- 
son was able to bestow. The day after her arrival, 
one of the Burman children, Mary Hasseltine, took 
the small pox, and she being the only person just 
then on whom Mrs. Judson could rely in taking 
care of the infant Maria, the poor woman had an 
amount of labor to perform that would seem suffi- 
cient to break down the strongest constitution. "I 
knew not what to do," she afterward wrote, "for I 
could procure no assistance from the neighborhood, 
or medicine for the sufferers, but was all day long 
going backward and forward from the house to the 
prison with little Maria in my arms. Sometimes I 
was greatly relieved by leaving her, for an hour, 
when asleep, by the side of her father, while I re- 
turned to the house to look after Mary, whose fever 
ran so high as to produce delirium. She was so com- 
pletely covered with the small pox, that there was no 
distinction in the pustules. As she was in the same 
little room with myself, I knew Maria would take 
it; I therefore inoculated her from another child, 
before Mary's had arrived at such a state as to be 
infectious. At the same time I inoculated Abby, 
and the jailer's children, who all had it so lightly 
as hardly to interrupt their play. But the inocu- 
lation in the arm of my poor little Maria did not 
take — she caught it of Mary, and had it the natural 
way. She was then only three months and a half 



168 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



old, and had been a most healthy child ; bnt it was 
above three months before she perfectly recovered 
from the effects of this dreadful disorder. 1 ' 

Though vaccinated before leaving America, yet, 
from long and constant exposure, and without the 
preliminary symptom of fever, Mrs. Judson had 
something like a hundred pustules. But she sank 
not beneath these accumulated burdens ; as soon 
as the children had recovered, greatly debilitated, 
and with one of the alarming diseases of the coun- 
try, to which foreigners are peculiarly subject, drag- 
ging her down, she repaired to Ava, alone, to obtain 
the medicine chest — an article indispensable to mis- 
sionaries in a strange and particularly a tropical 
climate. She started on her return to Oung-pen-la 
in so weak a condition as to be unable to stand; 
and, when she reached her miserable home, was 
unable to get into the ch airless hovel without the 
help of the attentive Bengalee cook, who burst into 
tears when he beheld her cadaverous face and ema- 
ciated form. Crawling upon the only mat in her 
little room, which had been a hospital since her 
first arrival in the place, she there- lay between two 
and three months, unable, most of the time, to do 
aught for herself, much less for her husband. The 
latter, though now restored to comfortable health, 
depended on the kindness of friends to properly 
prepare his food, and for other attentions to lubri- 
cate the harsher asperities of prison life. A single 
day's neglect subjected him to suffering not easily 
to be borne. 



[ 1 ai ::^TSA^r jut 5 



169 



But ;t man's extremity is God's opportunity ; " and 
He who directed the birds of heaven to the prophet's 
retreat, did not leave the Btirnian apostle to perish, 
though he was in a land of human vultures. It is 
said that a common Bengalee cook will do no thing 
bnt the simple drudgery of his profession, bnt the 
one whom Providence flung into the bosom of the 
Jndson family, forgetting self snrrendering com- 
ibrrs. and laying as: :Ie caste, gave his hear: and 
nnrestricted services to the afflicted and helpless 
missionaries, without the prospect that he would 
ever receive dne recompense for his indispensable 
labors. Beneath an nnpromising exterior beat a 
true heart; and the case of this Bengalee servant 
seems to beantifully verify the words of Gay : 

Friendship is like the BmrfB eiernal rays ; 
Bat daily benefits exhaust the flame, 
It still is giving, and still burns the same. 

Throngh the smiles of a gracious Providence, 
when, at length, the fortune of the missionaries was 
reversed, they were enabled to snitably reward this 
kind-hearted servant for his invaluable services. 

"While Mrs. Jndson was lying on a bamboo floor, 
during the nine or ten longest weeks of her life, 
her forlorn infant, it is probable, endured more suf- 
fering than any of the family. Unable herself to 
supply it with its proper nourishment. 3Irs. Jud- 
eon made the utmost efforts to obtain a nurse, but 
failed: and. what was still more perplexing, she 
could not, for some time, procure anv milk in the 
8 



170 



THE MISSIONAEY LABOKS 



village. But what will not a mother do, in great 
emergencies ? what can exhaust her schemes, when 
the life of a child is at stake ? Mrs. Judson did not 
give up. Though her "flesh" had failed, her 
" heart " had lost none of its strength. She could 
say, with the Psalmist, " God is the strength of my 
heart, and my portion forever." Looking to Him for 
support and counsel, as she lay, night after night, 
listening to the dismal, dirge-like cries of her fam- 
ishing babe, without the ability to afford it relief, 
she at length resorted to the potency of presents, 
which, coupled with the power of eloquent looks, 
and the persuasive pleadings of faint words, so 
wrought upon the obdurate hearts of the jailers, that, 
at her request, Mr. Judson was permitted to leave 
the prison for a short time, from day to day, and 
carry the little starveling around the village to such 
mothers as had infant children, and were merciful 
enough to give it nourishment. 

Fiction must exhaust its resources in drawing a 
picture of trials and sufferings more painful than the 
life of the Judson family at Oung-pen-la. However 
deficient in fullness the limnings in the preceding 
pages of this chapter may be, the picture is, we 
believe, correct in outline; and let the thought- 
less worldling, who calls the missionary's a life of 
ease, and whose blurred imagination gives it the 
coloring of delightful romance, not turn too hastily 
from its contemplation. Scrutinize it in every part, 
and then point out the sunbeams that twinkle on the 
canvas : or, if you fail to do this, turn away in mute 



OF ADORER AM JTJDSOH". 



171 



admiration of the christian fortitude, meek submis- 
sion, and heroic endurance of these tried disciples of 
Christ, and speak no more in depreciating terms 
of the motives and toils of the heaven-appointed 
heralds of Christianity. 

While Air. Judson was lying more than half a 
year in the wretched cells of Oung-pen-la, the Eng- 
lish army was gradually, but very slowly, ascending 
the Irrawaddy, * defeating the proud and boastful, yet 
cowardly legions of the king, at several towns along 
the route, and as often offering overtures of peace, 
which were as often disdainfully rejected. But at 
length, in the early part of 1826, the near approach 
of the foreign forces to the golden city, caused the 
golden legs to tremble, and induced his imperial and 
heretofore imperious majesty to take into consider- 
ation the proposals for peace, which were becoming 
more and more grasping in their demands. In order 
to carry on the negotiations, he sent for Mr. J udson, 
to act as interpreter. The latter had no objections 
to leaving Oung-pen-la, though he shared but little 
better at Maloun, where the Burman camp was, and 
whither he was immediately sent, to translate for the 

* After the capture of Rangoon, the English army was delayed 
nearly a year at that place, owing to the sickness of the soldiers, the 
scarcity of provisions, and other causes. In June, 1825, the army 
retired into barracks at Prome, and there remained during the hot 
and rainy season, which usually lasts from May to November. Hence 
the long period that elapsed between the fall of Rangoon and the 
storming of Maloun, which latter event occurred on the 19th of Jan- 
uary, 1826, and was the circumstance which led the king to weigh 
the question of a treaty. 



172 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



king. He there passed seven or eight weeks, a pris- 
oner at large, and was then sent to Ava. 

While he was at the former place, his wife, who 
had followed him from Oung-pen-la to Ava, was pros- 
trated by the spotted fever, deprived of her reason, 
and brought to the verge of the grave. Dr. Price, 
who also rendered assistance in the negotiations, at- 
tended her, and had, for days, no hopes of her recov- 
ery. On one occasion, she was so low that the natives 
came in to see her die ; and on beholding her, they 
exclaimed, " She is dead ! and if the King of angels 
should come in, he could not recover her." But the 
poor idolaters knew nothing of the power of the 
" King of angels," for he did restore her. Meantime, 
He also provided for the helpless and hapless little 
Maria, a Burman nurse offering to become its tem- 
porary foster-mother, the very day that Mrs. Judson 
was taken with the fever. 

The treaty of peace was concluded at Yandabo, 
forty miles below Ava, on the 24th of February, 
1826. By its terms, the emperor agreed to pay the 
English 5,000,000 rupees, or nearly $2,500,000, and 
ceded Arracan, Tavoy, Maulmain, and Mergui, and 
also a part of Martaban. 

In compliance with the treaty, all the prisoners at 
Oung-pen-la were set free, some to be sent to their 
homes, others to the English camp. Messrs. Judson 
and Price were strongly urged to remain at the 
capital, and the latter, after some consideration, 
complied with the wishes of the king. He there 
continued the practice of medicine ; established and 



OF AJ50NIRAM JUDSOX. 



173 



faithfully attended to the duties of a school for the 
children of noblemen; lectured occasionally on as- 
tronomy, and such other sciences as show the fal- 
lacy of the system of Buddhism, and preached to 
his retainers, and such as felt disposed to visit his 
house on Sunday. Early in the winter of 1828, he 
obtained permission to take several of his pupils to 
Serampore, to finish their studies ; but he was then 
sinking under pulmonary consumption. On the 
morning he was to sail, February 14th, he arose, 
dressed himself, and soon afterward sat down in his 
chair, and died. Sis attendants, who had been ab- 
sent from his room a few moments, retoning, found 
him lifeless, in a sitting posture. The school was 
broken up, and the station unoccupied for years. 

Mr. Judson repaired, with his family, by invita- 
tion, to the headquarters of Sir Archibald Campbell, 
who was then at Tandabo. They were received by 
the general with extreme cordiality, and shared his 
hospitalities about two weeks. He then gave them 
a passage to Rangoon, for which place they em- 
barked on the Sth of March, and where they arrived 
the latter part of the same month. 

Mr. Judson had been absent two years and a quar- 
ter, and, considering the turbulent state of affairs in 
the country during this time, it is not surprising that 
he found great changes had taken place. The fol- 
lowing extracts from a letter written on the 25th of 
March, just after reaching Rangoon, contain, among 
other things, some interesting facts in regard to the 
Burman converts, and conclude with the expression 



174 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



of sentiments which highly exalt his character. It 
was addressed to Dr. Bolles : * 

" Through the kind interposition of our heavenly 
Father, our lives have been preserved, in the most 
imminent danger, from the hand of the executioner, 
and in repeated instances of most alarming illness, 
during my protracted imprisonment of one year and 
seven months — nine months in three pair of fetters, 
two months in five, six months in one, and two months 
a prisoner at large. Subsequent to the latter period, 
I spent about six weeks in the house of the north 
governor of the palace, who petitioned for my re- 
lease, and took me under his charge ; and finally, 
on the joyful 21st of February last, took leave, with 
Mrs. Judson and family, of the scene of our suffer- 
ings • — ■sufferings which, it would seem, have been 
unavailing to answer any valuable missionary pur- 
pose, unless so far as they may have been silently 
blessed to our spiritual improvement and capacity 
for future usefulness. Let me beg your prayers that 
it may not be in vain, that we have been afflicted. 

"The disciples and inquirers have been dispersed 



* At the triennial meeting of the Convention, in 1826, Dr. Bolles 
was appointed Corresponding Secretary, in place of Dr. Staughton, 
who had served in that capacity since the formation of the Society, 
and who now resigned the office. Two years previous, for the sake 
of convenience, the seat of management of the mission had been re- 
moved from Washington to Boston ; and prior to that date, it had 
been removed from Philadelphia to the capital, to accommodate Dr. 
Staughton, who was appointed President of Columbian College on 
its establishment. 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSON, 



175 



in all directions. Several are dead ; several I found 
on my passage down the river, and gave them notice 
of my plans, in case they might wish to follow ; and 
several are in this place waiting for some movement. 
Moung Shwa-ba has been in the mission-house during 
the whole, and Moung Ing with Mrs. Judson at Ava. 
Moung Shwa-Gnong I have been unable to find, but 
understood he was alive somewhere in the interior. 
"We had a pleasant meeting with Mah Men-la and 
her sister, Mah Poke, who were living in boats at 
Prome, and instantly resolved to accompany us. I 
long for the time when we shall be able to reerect 
the standard of the gospel, and enjoy .once more the 
stated worship and ordinances of the Lord's house. 
I feel a strong desire henceforth to know nothing 
among this people, but Jesus Christ and him cruci- 
fied ; and under an abiding sense of the comparative 
worthlessness of all worldly things, to avoid every 
secular occupation, and all literary and scientific 
pursuits, and devote the remainder of my days to the 
simple declaration of the all-precious truth of the 
gospel of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ." 



OHAPTEE XIY. 



Retrospect of the Mission — Mr. and Mrs. Judson remove to Amherst — Mr. 
Judson goes to Ava, in connection with the English Embassy — Defeat of hia 
Object in joining the Embassy — Returns to Amherst — Death of Mrs. Judson — 
Return of Mr. and Mrs. Wade, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. Boardman — 
Death of Mr. Judson's Daughter. 

With the close of the Burcnan war, the Burman 
mission ended the first portion of its history. The 
mission had to be reestablished, and, excepting the 
acquisition of the langnage, as Mrs. Judson remarked 
at the time, the whole work had to be begun 
anew. During the twelve years embraced in this 
period, inexperience on the part of the missionaries, 
and profitless projects and undertakings as a conse- 
quence; meagerness of means, resulting from the 
ignorance of American christians in regard to their 
duty to the heathen; intolerance, war, and many 
other adverse influences, had retarded, and, at times, 
wholly delayed the work. 

But, notwithstanding all this, the founding of the 
mission had been attended with much good. Not to 
mention other happy results, it had developed and 
strengthened the christian virtues of the great man 



ADOXIEAM JITDSON. 



177 



whoni God had honored in making him its founder, 
and had thoroughly schooled him for the herculean 
labors and the stupendous trials that were vet in re- 
serve for him; and it had been the means, as the 
first fruits of patient toil and nnfaltering faith, of 
gathering eighteen precious souls into the garner of 
the christian church. 

Prior to 1826, twelve missionaries had entered on 
the work in Burniah. Three of these, Messrs. "Whee- 
lock and Colnian, and Mrs. Price, had died, and two, 
the widowed wives of the men just mentioned, had 
been removed by bereavement. Of the seven others, 
four were still in exile at Calcutta, leaving but three 
on the ground to commence the labors embraced in 
the second portion of the history of this mission. 
This period will extend over the next twenty-four 
vears. and bring us down to the close of Mr. Judson's 
life. 

On leaving Ava, it was Mr. Judson's intention to 
proceed to the peninsula south-east of Rangoon, and 
establish a mission, either at Tavoy or Mergui, these 
parts being now accessible to the peace-publisher. 
But soon after his arrival at Rangoon, he altered 
his plans, and accepted an invitation from Mr. Craw- 
ford, the commissioner of Lord Amherst, who was 
then governor-general of India, to accompany him 
on a tour through some of the newly ceded dis- 
tricts. It was to be made with reference to select- 
ing a site for a new town, designed thenceforward 
to be the capital of the British territory in those 
parts. 

8* 



178 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Mr. Judson left Bangoon in company with Mr. 
Crawford, on the first of April, 1826. They pro- 
ceeded up the Salwen or Martaban, and, at length, 
a short distance from its month, fixed npon a spot 
for the contemplated town, which they appropriately 
named Amherst. It is on the east side of the riyer, 
and on the dividing line of Bnrmah Proper and 
British Bnrmah. 

The setting apart of this spot for the purpose 
before specified, was formal, and ceremonies of a 
very solemn and interesting character were perform- 
ed on the occasion. After the firing of gnns, and 
other appropriate acts, with the British flag wav- 
ing oyer his head, Mr. Judson read the sixtieth chap- 
ter of Isaiah and offered a prayer, dedicating the 
place to the rule of civilized authority and christian 
toleration. It was then a wild spot in the jungle, 
and the language of inspiration and the voice of 
prayer must have broken strangely upon the soli- 
tude of the wilderness. Nature herself, it would 
seem, must have held her breath in awful suspense 
as she caught the mysterious words, " Violence shall 
no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruc- 
tion within thy borders," * * * "A little one 
shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong 
nation." And how eloquent must have been the sup- 
plication of the good man, whose soul was inspired 
by the promises of God ; whose eye must have seen 
the whole Gentile world coming to Christ, and whose 
heart must have rejoiced, while the dromedaries of 
Midian and Ephah, the gold of Sheba, the flocks of 



OF ADOXIEAM JTOSOX. 



179 



Kedar, the ships of Tarshish, in short, the wealth 
of the whole earth, was being ponred into the trea- 
sury of the Lord, and the glory of the church was 
being consummated. 

Rejoicing that a place had been found where he 
could be protected in preaching the gospel, Mr. Jud- 
son was impatient to locate his family at Amherst, 
and resume the work so congenial to his feelings. 
He accordingly returned to Eangoon on the 9th of 
April, and prepared for the removal, which was 
effected in June. 

Several of the native converts, among whom were 
Moung Ing and Moung Shwa-ba, also sought an 
asylum at Amherst. Some of them, advised of 
Mr. Judson's plans, preceded him in the removal 
thither. Mentioning this fact to a friend in Eng. 
land, to whom he wrote on the 12th of July, he 
added, that they " built the first native houses that 
encroached on the jungle, and disturbed the deer 
and wild fowl which had been the undisputed oc- 
cupants of the peninsula." 

Just after the • settlement of the missionaries at 
Amherst, Mrs. Judson received three hundred ru- 
pees from a friend in England, with which present 
she was enabled to erect a temporary mission-house, 
in which she opened a small school. 

Mr. Judson had not fairly entered on his labors, 
before he received a pressing invitation to accompany 
Mr. Crawfurd on an embassy to the Bui-man court, 
having for its object the negotiating of a commercial 
treaty. He was to act in the capacity of translator ; 



180 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



but so comfortable was Ms situation at Amherst, and 
so favorable the prospect for Ms immediate use- 
fulness there, that be bad, at first, no desire to leave, 
He therefore declined ; but Mr. Crawford renewed 
bis proposal, and, as an inducement for Mr. J" udsori 
to accept it, agreed, if the thing were possible, to 
have an article embodied in the treaty, securing reli- 
gious toleration. Mr. Judson could desire no con- 
summation more earnestly than this ; for the field 
now accessible to christian effort in those parts was 
small, and looking to the exigences of the future, ho 
wished to have removed, at once and forever, all 
obstacles that would interfere with the prosecution 
of missionary labor in any part of the empire. From 
this consideration, after deliberation and prayer, he 
accepted the offer; and leaving his wife quietly 
and comfortably situated in the house of the civil 
superintendent of the town, Captain Fenwick — who 
was so kind and obliging as to vacate it for their ac- 
commodation — he returned to Rangoon in the early 
part of July, to await final orders from Bengal. 
The embassy did not leave until the first of Septem- 
ber. On the 28th of that month, Mr. Judson once 
more gazed on the golden city, the scene of his incal- 
culable sufferings, and the awakener of many pain- 
ful recollections. But he doubtless regarded it as 
one of the fiery furnaces in which he had been tried ; 
nor would he have shrank from reentering its death- 
prison, if, by that means, and that only, hie could 
effect the object of his present mission. But in this 
he was sadly, sorrowfully disappointed. In a letter 



OF ADONIS AM JTDSON. 



181 



addressed to the corresponding secretary, and dated 
Ava, December 7th, 1826, he says : 

"In the very commencement of negotiations, I 
ascertained that it would be impossible to effect any 
thing in favor of religions toleration, in consequence 
of the extraordinary ground assumed by the Burmese 
commissioners. Reluctant, as the government has 
ever been, to enter into any stipulations with a foreign 
power, they resolved to do nothing more than they 
were obliged to by the treaty of Yandabo. And as 
that required them to make a ' commercial treaty,' 
they resolved to confine the discussions to points 
strictly commercial ; so that, instead of a treaty of 
twenty-two articles, calculated to place the relations 
of the two countries on the most libera! and friendly 
footing, the treaty just concluded is confined to four ; 
and those utterly insignificant. So far, therefore, as 
I had a view to the attainment of religious toleration, 
in accompanying the embassy, I have entirely failed." 

"When he started for Ava, he expected to return in 
four or five months ; but the delay of the embassy 
at Rangoon, also at the capital, in obtaining an audi- 
ence with the king, and in bringing the negotiations to 
a close, prolonged his absence from his newly-adopted 
home two or three months longer than he had antici- 
pated. When, at length, he returned to Amherst, 
which was on the 24th of January, 1S27, it was to 
behold his home made desolate, and to seek the 
grave of his fallen companion ! 



182 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Early in the month of October, Mrs. Judson was 
seized with a violent remittent fever ; her constitu- 
tion, rendered feeble by previous disease and long 
and extreme hardship, rapidly gave way, and after 
eighteen days illness she went to her heavenly rest. 
The tidings of her departure reached Mr. Judson 
just before he left Ava, and, notwithstanding his dis- 
cipline in the school of affliction, he was almost over- 
whelmed with grief. Some months after his return, 
and subsequent to another bereavement, he says, in 
reference to Mrs. Judson, " The only pleasant reflec- 
tion ■ — • the only one that assuages the anguish of retro- 
spection — is, that she now rests far away, where no 
spotted-faced executioner can fill her heart with ter- 
ror; where no unfeeling magistrate can extort the 
scanty pittance which she had preserved through 
every risk, to sustain her fettered husband and fam- 
ishing babe ; no more exposed to lie on a bed of 
languishment, and stung with the uncertainty, what 
would become of her poor husband and child when 
she was gone. No, she has her little ones around 
her, I trust, and has taught them to praise the source 
whence their deliverance flowed. Yes, her little son, 
his soul enlarged to angel's size, was perhaps the first 
to meet her at heaven's portals, and welcome his 
mother to his own abode." 

And then, how like a christian philosopher he 
writes elsewhere : 

" Much she saw and suffered of the evil of this 
evil world ; and eminently was she qualified to relish 



OF ADONTRAM JUDSON. 



183 



and enjoy the pure and holy rest into which she has 
entered. True, she has been taken from a sphere in 
which she was singularly qualified, by her natural 
disposition, her winning manners, her devoted zeal, 
and her perfect acquaintance with the language, to 
be extensively serviceable to the cause of Christ ; 
true, she has been torn from her husband's bleeding 
heart, and from her darling babe ; but infinite wis- 
dom and love have presided, as ever, in this most 
afflicting dispensation. Faith decides that it is all 
right, and the decision of faith eternity will soon 
confirm." 

Mrs. Judson was buried but a few rods from the 
house in which she died, and two small marble 
stones, standing on a rise of ground that looks out 
upon the ocean, indicate the resting place of one to 
whose memory no monument of marble, however 
costly, nor aught that is subject to "decay's effac- 
ing fingers," can do justice. To perseverance that 
matches the untiring exertions of the worthiest ma- 
trons of our Revolution ; to conjugal affection equal 
to that of Lady Fanshaw, or the Duchess of Bavaria ; 
to self-devotion like that of the French domestic, La 
Blonde, whose humble but heroic exertions to serve 
the family of her deceased master most beautifully 
exemplified the truth of the maxim, 

" The height of virtue is to serve mankind ; " 

to the enthusiasm of Madam Roland, exhibited in a 
superior cause, and in a more appropriate manner, 
together with her fortitude displayed in a more 



184 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Christ-like spirit; to courage that obscures that of 
queen Carcas, because equally as fearless, and shown 
in a way more in keeping with the nature of woman's 
duties ; to talents and wisdom superior to those of 
Artemisia, the queen of Caria, without her martial 
spirit, and with a more exalted ambition; — to all 
these were added, in her character, strength of benev- 
olent feeling, firmness of faith, and love and fidelity 
to Christ, unsurpassed in the records of pious exam- 
ple and moral heroism. All the greatness of unsel- 
fishness, all the charms of unswerving rectitude, all 
the beauty, strength, and loyalty of social love, all 
the sublimity of sanctified and soaring thought, here 
seem compressed and crowded into one woman's 
spirit ; and that spirit, temporarily linked to earth, 
yet uniformly heavenward in its aspirations and ten- 
dencies, surrounded her path with a halo of glory 
from the moment she stepped upon the deck of the 
Caravan, to encounter the perils of the deep and the 
greater ones of an unknown, heathen land, an intol- 
erant people, and a pernicious climate, until, amid 
the cries of the native converts, the universal grief of 
the little group of English friends, and the wail of 
Christianity itself, her eyes were closed in peaceful 
sleep, and, with three oceans, which she had thrice 
traversed on her mission of mercy, separating her 
from her native land, she was laid to rest 

" 'Neath the cool branches of the Hopia tree." 

A few days after the burial of Mrs. Judson, Mr. 
and Mrs. "Wade returned from Calcutta, accompa- 
nied by George D. Boardman and wife, who had 



OF ADOXIBA^I JTDSON. 



185 



sailed from Philadelphia, under appointment of the 
Board of Managers, nearly two years before, but, 
owing to the turbulence in the Burman empire, 
had proceeded no farther than Calcutta. There they 
had been about a year and a half, studying with 
assiduity, and otherwise fitting themselves to aid 
the lone and sorrowing widower, whom they had 
now joined in the noble enterprise for evangelizing 
the heathen. 

Other changes, beside the death of his wife and 
the arrival of the missionaries, had taken place, at 
Amherst, while Mr. Judson was at Ava. On his 
return, only four of the baptized converts were re- 
maining ; the rest had gone into different parts 
of the country. The four still tarrying there were 
Moung Ing, Moung Shwa-ba, Mah Men-la, and Mah 
Doke. These, he said, welcomed him with the voice 
of lamentation, for his presence " reminded them of 
the great loss they had sustained in the death of 
Mrs. Judson." 

A still greater change had been wrought by Sir 
Archibald Campbell's removal of his troops to Maul- 
main, twenty-five miles up the Sal wen from Am- 
herst. Most of the Burman emigrants had accom- 
panied or followed him, and settled in the vicinity 
of his new headquarters. These changes made Am- 
herst exhibit signs of decay. Nevertheless, as the 
river was navigable for vessels of a large size, Mr. 
Judson had, at that time, no faith in the importance 
or growth of Maulmain. This will be seen by a sin- 
gle extract from his journal : 



186 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" February 10. — A few days ago went up to 
Maulmain to pay my respects to Sir Archibald 
Campbell, and also to obtain an interview with Dr. 
R. who attended Mrs. Judson in her last illness. 
Sir Archibald encourages our removing to his fa- 
vorite station ; but, as we are already settled here, 
we feel disposed to wait a little, until we see what 
the supreme government intend to do for the place." 

On the 25th of the same month, just four weeks 
after Mr. Judson had recommenced his labors at 
Amherst in the acquired language, he had the hap- 
piness of assisting to set apart Moung Ing to the 
work of the ministry — though he was not empow- 
ered to administer the gospel ordinances. This was 
the first native assistant preacher ordained by Amer- 
ican Baptists. They have now one hundred and 
twenty-eight at the Asiatic stations, and one hundred 
and ninety-two in all. 

Moung Ing immediately repaired to Mergui, where 
he remained several months, and by his efficient la- 
bors cheered the hearts of those who had seen fit to 
ordain him. 

Since she had become motherless, Maria Elizabeth 
JButterworth Judson had been in the charge of Mrs. 
Wade, whose kindest care, coupled with the best 
medical attention and the prayers of her father and 
christian friends, could not save her from gradually 
sinking under a complaint which had afflicted her 
for months. And on the 24th of April, 1827, Mr. 
Judson closed the eyes of his " sweet little Maria," 



OF ADCXNIBAM JUDSOH". 



187 



the last member of his family, and prepared to lay 
her to rest beside her mother. Together, he wrote 
to his mother-in-law ten days afterward, " together, 
I trust their spirits are now rejoicing, after a short 
separation of precisely six months. Thus I am left 
alone in the wide world. * * * What remains 
for me, bnt to hold myself in readiness to follow 
the dear departed to that blessed world, 

' Where my best friends, m y kindred dwell, 
Where God, my Saviour reigns ? ' " 

Writing in regard to this bereavement, to the sis- 
ters of Mrs. Judson, a few months later, he says : 
" The last enemy that shall be destroyed, is death. 
Yes, awful power, thou shalt devour thyself and die. 
And then my angelic Aim, and my meek, blue-eyed 
Roger, and my tender-hearted, affectionate, darling 
Maria, — my venerable father, yon, my dear sisters, 
that still remain, our still surviving parents, and, I 
hope, myself, though all unworthy, shall be rescued 
from the power of death and the grave ; and when 
the crown of life is set on our heads, and we know 
assuredly, that we shall die no more, we shall make 
heaven's arches ring with songs of praise to Him, 
who hath loved us, and washed us from our sins in 
his own blood." 



CIIAPTEK XY. 



Establishment of the Maulmain Mission, by Mr. Boardraan — Messrs. Judson and 
Wade remove thither — Mr. Boardmau removes to Tavoy— His Death — Mr. 
Judson renounces the title of D. D. — Arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Bennett — Messrs. 
Judson and Wade visit Rangoon — Mr. Judson proceeds to Prome — His return 
to Rangoon. 

The rapid growth and increasing importance of 
Maulmain soon seemed to render it necessary that 
one of the missionaries should be stationed there ; 
and it was decided among themselves that Mr. 
Boardman should go, which he accordingly did, in 
the month of May. Meantime, Mr. Wade was 
to remain at Amherst, and Mr. Judson to la- 
bor alternately at the two stations, apportioning 
his time between them as their exigences might 
require. 

Before the middle of summer, Mrs. "Wade col- 
lected twenty girls into a school, which she had 
opened in the spring ; and the mission at Amherst 
was otherwise prospering. But in October, the pop- 
ulation became so reduced, that it was deemed ad- 
visable to prepare for removing the school to Maul- 
main, and to abandon, for the present, the station at 



ADOXIEAM JUDSON. 



189 



Amherst. After a month's, busy preparation, at the 
former place, Mr. Judson went down to the latter, 
on the 10th of November, and, four days after, him- 
self, Mr. and Mrs. Wade, Moung Slrwa-ba, and 
Moung Ing, who had returned from Mergui nearly a 
month previous, removed to Maulmain. Eleven of 
the females connected with Mrs. Wade's school, and 
some boys left in charge of the missionaries by Mah 
Men-la, accompanied them. Mr. Boardman had 
already established a school for boys, and Mrs. 
Boardman another for girls : the girls whom Mrs. 
Wade had in charge, were put into the latter school, 
and the two women labored conjointly, and with 
gratifying tokens of the Divine approbation. Two 
zayats, for Messrs. Judson and Wade, were forth- 
with erected, and all the missionaries were soon 
prosperously at work together in the new capital, 
whose population now numbered from fifteen to 
twenty thousand. 

The following record, made by Mr. Judson, shows 
the promising aspect of things immediately after the 
union of the missionary band : 

"Nove^iber 25. Lord's day. — We have arranged 
a large room in front of the house, in the manner of 
the zayat, and to-day set up worship in the old Ran- 
goon fashion ; and a busy day it has been. About 
seventy persons, great and small, attended worship 
in the afternoon; after which, twenty or thirty 
women followed Mrs. Wade into another room, and 
listened to her instruction." 



190 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Early in the winter of 1827, Mr. Judson resolved 
to erect a reading zayat, for the benefit of snch per- 
sons as conld not peruse the Bnrman Scriptures, yet 
were disposed to hear them read. Moung Shwa-ba 
and Moung Ing were appointed to perform alter- 
nately the exercises at this place ; and the former 
made the commencement on the third Sunday in 
December. He was, at this period, employed half 
of the time on account of the mission, and the other 
half in connection with the female school. Moung 
Ing was devoting all his time to the interests of the 
mission, his office being that of an itinerant, having 
the whole city for his field. 

All the missionaries and the two assistants were 
assiduously engaged in their delightful work at the 
close of the year, and their several distinct depart- 
ments of labor were meeting with the favor of 
Heaven. Attentive listeners were seen at the reading 
zayat ; inquirers were visiting the male missionaries 
at their several places of instruction ; children in 
the female school were inquiring the way to Jesus ; 
and two or three adults, who were indulging the hope 
that their sins had been forgiven, were contemplating 
burial with Christ in baptism. 

The first disciples of the new religion, who went 
down into the waters at Maulmain, were Moung 
Dwah, the husband of Mah Doke, and a female 
named Mah Lah. They were baptized on the 17th 
of January, 1828. Another followed in the same 
ordinance on the 20th of March. 

The collection of the missionaries at Maulmain, 



OF ADONIBAM JTDSOjS". 



191 



did not favorably impress the Board : neither did 
they themselves consider it desirable that they should 
permanently remain there. The corresponding secre- 
tary addressed them on the subject ; they cheerfully 
complied with his ins tractions, and it was decided 
that Mr. Boardman should remove to the province 
of Tavoy, and establish a mission at its principal 
town, which takes the name of the district. Thither 
he went, on the 29th of March, and there he labored 
with remarkable success, particularly among the 
Karens. Though his career as a missionary was 
brief, he lived long enough to merit, for self-sacrific- 
ing toils and lofty generosity of spirit, the title of 
christian hero. He died on the 11th of February, 
1831, and was buried in what was once a Buddhist 
grove, and beside a forsaken and dilapidated pagoda. 
His tomb is covered by a marble slab, which was 
placed there by three officers of the provincial gov- 
ernment. Mr. Judson's feelings on hearing of his 
demise, are thus expressed in his journal of February 
28th : " One of the brightest luminaries of Burmah 
is extinguished — dear brother Boardman has gone 
to his eternal rest. He fell gloriously at the head of 
his troops, in the arms of victory — thirty-eight wild 
Karens having been brought into the camp of King 
Jesus, since the beginning of the year, besides the 
thirty-two that were brought in during the two pre- 
ceding years. Disabled by mortal wounds, he was 
obliged, through the whole of his last expedition, to 
be carried on a litter ; but his presence was a host, 
and the Holy Spirit accompanied his dying whispers 



192 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



with almighty influence. Such a death, next to 
that of martyrdom, must be glorious in the eyes of 
Heaven." 

The blessing of Heaven continued to attend the 
efforts of the missionaries who remained at Maul 
main. The day after Mr. JBoardman's depart- 
ure, three converts were baptized, and three -oth- 
er persons were giving evidence of having been 
born of the Spirit. During the months of April 
and May, Mr. Judson was absent from the zayat 
scarcely a day, and he rarely failed to meet ear- 
nest inquirers, and not unfrequently half a dozen 
at a time. He was thus busily employed dur- 
ing the year, nor did the interest diminish in the 
least. 

The number of additions made to the little church 
by baptism, in 1828, was thirty, and these were all 
natives. Eight were connected with Mrs. Wade's 
school, and one was Mah-ree or Mary Hasseltine, 
the only surviving member of Mrs. Judson's school 
at Ava. 

The following card, having reference to the honor- 
ary title of Doctor of Divinity, was dated at Maul- 
main, May 9th, 1828 : 

" I beg leave to be allowed the privilege of re- 
questing my correspondents and friends, through the 
medium of the American Baptist Magazine, and the 
Columbian Star, no longer to apply to my name the 
title which was conferred on me in the year 1823, by 
the corporation of Brown University, and which, 



OF ADOXIEAM JTDSON. 



193 



with all deference and respect for that honorable 
body, I hereby resign. 

,; Searly three years elapsed before I was informed 
of the honor done me, and two years more have 
been suffered to pass, partly from the groundless idea 
that it was too late to decline the honor, and partly 
through fear of doing what might seem to reflect on 
those who have taken a different course, or be liable 
to the charge of affected singularity, or superstitious 
preciseness. But I am now convinced that the com- 
mands of Christ, and the general spirit of the gos- 
pel, are paramount to all prudential considerations ; 
and I only regret, that I have so long delayed to 
make this communication. 

A. Judsox." 

On the 4th of January, 1S29, Messrs. Judson and 
'Wade had the happiness of ordaining Ko Thah-a as 
pastor of the church at Rangoon, where he had been 
laboring with a few followers of the Saviour, since 
the close of the war. In Mr. Judson's opinion, he 
had most excellent qualifications for the office to 
which he was called ; and he was commissioned to 
administer all the ordinances. He took his depar- 
ture for Rangoon one week after his ordination ; and 
his subsequent success showed that Mr. Judson's es- 
timate of his ministerial qualifications was correct. 
Moling Ing became his associate in a short time, and 
through their united efforts, twenty were added to 
the Rangoon church, by baptism, before the close of 

the year. Furthermore, several native christians, 
9 



194 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



who had been scattered through the jungles, hearing 
of their labors, and of the resuscitation and enlarge- 
ment of the church, came into the city, renewed their 
covenant vows, and worked as part of the organized 
body. 

Among the promising inquirers and applicants for 
baptism, who visited Mr. Judson during the first 
half of the year 1829, was a woman, whose case was 
peculiar, and is thus mentioned in his journal for 
June 7 th: 

"Several applications for baptism have lately been 
refused, the applicants being relatives of professors 
of religion, and influenced, we fear, by the example 
and persuasion of others, rather than by the impulse 
of grace. To-day, however, a clear case occurred — 
an old lady, eighty years of age, mother-in-law of a 
petty chief, who is one of our bitterest opposers. 
She commenced her inquiries, several months ago, 
with a great deal of timidity. And though she has 
acquired a little courage, and is a person of consid- 
erable presence, she almost trembles under a sense 
of the great responsibility of changing her religion. 
Such being her character, the promptness with which 
she answered our questions before the church, affected 
us even to tears. c How old are you, mother ? ' 
' Eighty years.' ■ Can you, at such an age, .renounce 
the religion that you have followed all your life long ? ' 
' I see that it is false, and I renounce it all.' c Why 
do you wish to be baptized into the religion of Jesus 
Christ V 'I have very, very many sins ; and I love 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



195 



the Lord who saves from sin.' ' Perhaps jour son- 
in-law, on hearing that you have been baptized, will 
abuse you, and turn you out of doors.' 'I hare 
another son-in-law, to whom I will flee.' 4 But he 
also is an opposer : suppose you should meet with 
the same treatment there.' ' You will, I think, let 
me come and live near you.' \Ye made no reply, 
willing that she should prove her sincerity by bear- 
ing the brunt alone. Her name is Mah Hlah. Be- 
hold this venerable woman, severing, at her time of 
life, all the ties which bind her to a large circle of 
connections and friends, hazarding the loss of a com- 
fortable, respectable situation, the loss of character, 
the loss of a shelter for her gray head, throwing her- 
self on the charity of certain foreigners ; and all for 
the sake of 'the Lord who saves from sin!' O 
blessed efficacy of the love of Christ ! " 

The number baptized into the Maulmain church, 
in the year 1829, was twenty-eight. Ten of these 
were English soldiers, who were shortly formed into 
a church by themselves. 

"While Mr. Juclson was carrying on his labors at 
the zayat, there and elsewhere pointing the perishing 
heathen to the Lamb of God, there were hours, or 
fragments of hours, almost . every day, which an 
economist of time like him could rescue from the 
oblivion of idleness, and these he was accustomed 
to devote to literary toil. In this department of 
labor he was now receiving valuable aid from Mr. 
Wade. At the close of the autumn of 1829, after 



190 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



twelve or fifteen months' close study, they had thor- 
oughly revised the JSTew Testament and the Epitome 
of the Old, and had ready for press no less than 
twelve other smaller works. These Mr. Judson 
enumerates as follows, in his journal for November 
29th. 

1st. The Catechism of Religion. This has already 
passed through two editions, in Burmese. It has 
also been translated and printed in Siamese, and 
translated in Taling or Peguese. 

2d. The Yiew of the Christian Religion ; thor- 
oughly revised for the fourth edition, in Burmese. 
It has also been translated in Taling and Siamese. 

3d. The Order of Worship of the Burman Church. 

4th. The Baptismal Service. 

5th. The Marriage Service. 

6th. The Funeral Service : the three last consist- 
ing chiefly of extracts from Scripture. 

7th. The Teacher's Guide ; or a digest of those 
parts of the ISTew Testament which relate to the duty 
of teachers of religion ; designed particularly for 
native pastors. 

8th. A Catechism of Astronomy. 

9th. A Catechism of Geography. 

10th. A Table of Chronological History ; or a 
Register of principal events, from the creation to the 
present time. 

11th. The Memoir of Mee Shwa-ee* 



*A little Burman girl, rescued from slavery at Amherst. 



OF ADOXIBAM JTJDSOX. 



197 



12th. The Golden Balance ; or the Christian and 
Buddhist Systems Contrasted. This has been trans- 
lated in the Taling. 

At the time the above was written, the Gospel of 
Matthew, which had been translated in the Siamese, 
by Mrs. Jndson, was being translated in Taling by 
an assistant in that department, named Ko Man-poke. 

It will be seen that there was printing enough to 
do ; but as yet there was no press at Maulmain. All 
work of this kind had to be sent to Serampore, which 
seriously impeded the progress of the mission. The 
wants of those who were anxious to read, could not 
be supplied. These wants, and Mr. Judson's feel- 
ings under the circumstances, are indicated in a letter 
addressed to a friend, in May, 1829. "O, it is affect- 
ing," he says, " to see with what eagerness the poor 
people, men, women, and children, listen to the 
sound of the gospel in their own native tongue ; how 
they sometimes gather close around the reader, and 
listen with their eyes as well as ears. We keep a 
Taling copyist at work all the time ; but it is impos- 
sible to do anything toward supplying the demand 
for Taling tracts. Indeed, the expense is so great, 
that we do not think of giving copies, except in the 
most pressing and important cases. The same is to 
be said of the Golden Balance in Burmese. O, we 
we want a thousand copies of this work to be sent 
instantly into all parts of the country — to Tavoy and 
Mergui, on the south ; to Rangoon, Prome, and 
Ava, on the north ; in all of which places we have 



198 



THE MISSIONAEY LABOES 



correspondents, or some means of communication. 
But we are like men with their hands cut off." 

Advertised of the wants of the mission, the Board 
sent out Mr. Cephas Bennett, a practical printer, who 
arrived at Maulmain, with a press and types, on the 
14th of January, 1830. His wife and two children 
accompanied him. He forthwith commenced opera- 
tions, and the works most needed were soon put to 
press. 

In February, 1830, Mr. and Mrs. Wade went to 
Rangoon on a visit, with the expectation of returning 
in a short time ; but their help was so much needed 
that they concluded to remain awhile. About the 
middle of April, the intense heat of the place so af- 
fected Mr. Wade, who had an attack of the liver 
complaint, that he took a trip to Maulmain, for his 
improvement. When he returned, which was the 
first week in May, Mr. Judson accompanied him, 
being: encouraged to make an effort to reenter the 
heart of Burmah proper. He found the spirit of in- 
quiry, in Rangoon, "more prevalent and more boldly 
indulged than formerly," and had reason " to thank 
God for all the past, and take courage for the time to 
come." 

On the 25th of May he writes : " Every day 
deepens the conviction in my mind, that I am not in 
the place where God would have me be. It was to 
the interior, and not to Rangoon, that my mind was 
turned long before I left Maulmain ; and while I feel 
that brother and sister Wade are in the right place, 
I feel that I am called elsewhere." 



OF ADOXIRAM JUDSON. 



199 



The place lie had in view at this time, was the 
city of Pronie, about half way up the Irrawaddy to 
Ava. Thither he started on the 29th of the month, 
accompanied by Moung Ing, and three or four other 
native converts. The boat was about two weeks in 
reaching Pronie, Mr. Judson being in no haste, and 
wishing; to sow beside the waters on the route. He 
halted at most of the settlements along the shores, 
and distributed books and tracts, and sometimes 
" held forth ;? to the throngs that gathered round 
him. They were so eager to obtain books that, in 
some instances, they not only pursued him to the 
boat, at night, but when he had pushed out into the 
stream to avoid them and obtain rest, they would 
stand on the shore and call, in the dead of night, to 
know if the teacher were asleep, stating that they 
wanted " a writing to get by heart.-' At one or two 
villages, he met early converts, whom he had not 
seen for years, and at others, heard, in one or two 
instances, of the conversion of persons whom he had 
never seen, but in whose hearts the seeds of truth 
had been lodged, through his instrumentality, long 
before. 

The people of Prome, influenced by suspicion, or 
more probably afraid of goverment, refused to rent 
Mr. Judson a house; and he found it difficult to 
obtain a home. As the only alternative, he sought 
an English gentleman, the sole European living 
there, and under his shattered roof he was freely 
admitted. The first Sabbath in the place, July 
13th, he passed at home, worshiping with his little 



200 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



company of disciples, and studying " patience and 
Thomas a' Kempis," " with the rain beating in on 
every side." 

The day previous to this, he had found an aged 
and dismantled zayat, with a patch of ground around 
it, in the center of the city, and had received some 
encouragement from the deputy governor, that it 
should be repaired for his use. On Monday, he 
went to the court house, where his excellency agreed 
the matter should be decided. He " found the ma- 
gistrates assembled, each sitting at his post in Bur- 
man style, and the deputy governor in the center. 
He pretended," continues Mr. Judson, " not to see 
or know me. I waited some time, and in an inter- 
val of business, addressed some of the inferior ma- 
gistrates. An inquiry arose who I was, and what I 
wanted. The deputy governor began slyly to assist 
me, and after some considerable conversation, it was 
unanimously agreed that I should be permitted to 
take possession of the old zayat, and repair it for 
my present residence. From the court house I went 
to survey my new estate. I find it to be forty-five 
feet long and twenty wide. The posts and the main 
parts of the roof and floor, being of teak, are still 
extant ; but it is all overgrown with wild creepers, 
and makes, on the whole, a pretty venerable ruin. 
It stands on holy ground, occupying one corner of 
the enclosure of a pagoda." 

The repairing of this " venerable ruin " was com- 
menced on the 15th of June, and Mr. Judson soon 
had an opportunity to lift up his voice publicly and 



OF ADOXIPwAM JTDS02s. 



201 



cry, Ci Ho, every one that thirsteth, come je to the 
waters," in a city that had stood twenty-five centu- 
ries and had never before been invited to drink of 
the river of life. One or two other zayats "were 
soon erected for the nse of Houns; Trig and his 
associates. 

For awhile the votaries of Gaudama crowded to 
the zayats, from day to day, and listened to the 
pressing and precious invitation ; many seemed will- 
ing to comply with its terms, and a few, a very few, 
did do it. At length, while things were in this 
state, the enemy, writes Mr. Judson, (August 23d, 
1S30,) ; ' assumed a threatening aspect; the poor peo- 
ple became frightened ; many sent back the tracts 
they had received ; and there was a general falling 
off at the zayats. I was summoned to undergo a 
long examination at the court house, not, however, 
on the subject of religion, but concerning all my past 
life, since I have been in Bnrmah. The result was 
forwarded to Ava. The magistrates still preserve a 
perfect neutrality, in consequence of the absence of 
the governor. At Ava, I have been regarded as a 
suspicious character ever since I deserted them at 
the close of the war and went over to the British. 
I know not what impression the governor of this 
place will there receive, or how he will feel toward 
me, when he is informed of the noise I am making 
in Prome/' 

Mr. Judson continued to labor at this place until 

autumn, though there was but little to encourage 

him at the zavats, or indeed elsewhere. Yet he 
9* 



202 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



managed, as usual, to employ himself in some useful 
manner. On the 8th of September, he writes to the 
missionaries at Maulmain : * " The rise of the river 
has, for several days, prevented my going to the zay- 
ats, they being situated in a distant part of the town. 
I have employed myself in revising brother "Wade's 
Investigator: and send herewith a clean copy. In 
return, I hope to be favored with a few hundred 
printed copies." 

At this date, the last inquirer had fled from the 
zayat and, probably, from the place ; and the way 
seemed nearly clear for Mr. Judson's return to Ran- 
goon. Ten days afterward, being afloat on his little 
boat just below the city, he writes: "I take leave 
of Prome and her towering god, Shwa Lan-dau, at 
whose base, I have been laboring with the kindest 
intentions, for the last three months and a half. Too 
firmly founded art thou, to be overthrown at pres- 
ent ; but the children of those who now plaster thee 
with gold, will yet pull thee down, nor leave one 
brick upon another." 

Though somewhat disappointed at being forsaken 
by the inquirers at the zayat, and obliged to leave 
Prome so soon, Mr. Judson was not wholly dissatis- 
fied with his brief sojourn there. He had communi- 
cated many a "momentous message " to its inquiring 
citizens ; he had also scattered hundreds of tracts ; 
and having thus cast the bread upon the waters, he 

* Mr. Boardman was at Maulmain part of the time during Mr. 
Judson's absence on this occasion. Mr. Wade returned there in July, 
1830. 



OF ADOXTRA3I JTDS0X. 



203 



departed with, a buoyant and hopeful spirit, expecting 
to " find it after many days." 

• ; Farewell to thee, Prome ! TTillingly would I 
have spent my last breath in thee and for thee. But 
thy sons ask me not to stay ; and I must preach the 
gospel to other cities, also ; for therefore am I sent. 
Eead the five hundred tracts that I have left with 
thee. Pray to the God and Saviour that I have told 
thee of. And if. hereafter, thou call me, though in 
the lowest whisper, and it reach me in the very ex- 
tremities of the empire, I will joyfully listen, and 
come back to thee/' 

Mr, Judson landed in Rangoon on the 25th of 
September ; and, on the Sth of the following month, 
ascertained the cause of the sudden and somewhat 
mysterious cessation of visits at the zayats, in Prome. 
The king had become annoyed, because he was in 
the heart of his empire, distributing tracts and pro- 
mulo-atino: the doctrines of a religion at war with 
Buddhism, and had issued an order for his removal 
from Prome. The people, hearing of this royal step, 
became alarmed, and shunned the strange teacher. 
The order thus issued, the woongyees were reluctant 
to execute, and applied to Major Burney, the British 
Resident at the capital, to use his authority, and com- 
pel Mr. Judson to depart. But he assured them he 
had not a right to interfere, as the missionary had no 
connection with the British government : he further- 
more begged them not to proceed in the prosecution 
of a measure which good men in all countries would 
condemn for its intolerance. They replied, that the 



204: 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



king's orders were peremptory ; that he must leave 
the interior, and limit his labors to the boundaries of 
Rangoon. Seeing how the case stood, Major Burney 
agreed to notify Mr. Judson of the king's order ; but 
Providence had ordained that the messenger of peace 
should, of his own accord, shake from his feet the 
dust of the old idolatrous city of Prome, and depart 
in peace. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



Labors of Mr. Judson at Rangoon — Removal to Maulmain — Arrival of Messrs. 
Mason, Kincaid, and Jones — Mr. Judson travels in the Jungle, and estab- 
lishes the Christian Communities of Wadesville, Newrille, and Chummerah — . 
Another Tour among the Karens. 

On his return to Rangoon, Mr. Judson found the 
mass of the people so fearful of being apprehended by 
government, that they avoided the public place of 
christian worship ; and, such being the case, although 
there were many secret inquirers, he deemed it a 
suitable time to hasten forward the translation of the 
Scriptures ; for he now felt more than ever the im- 
portance of having the task completed. Retiring to 
the garret of the house which himself and some of 
the disciples occupied, he resumed his labors on the 
Psalms, which he had begun to translate three years 
previous, and which had been laid aside to attend to 
more pressing work. But his seclusion was not such 
as to free him from interruption ; nor was the inter- 
est in spiritual matters at such a low ebb as to make 
it desirable that he should wholly withdraw from 
personal contact with the people. While the disci- 
ples who occupied the front part of the house below, 



206 



THE MISSIONARY LABOE8 



were accustomed to receive calls from inquirers, and 
present them with tracts and portions of the divine 
word, the more hopeful ones were admitted to Mr. 
Judson's apartment ; and they were so numerous as 
to absorb more than half of his time. " People," he 
says, " find their way to me from all parts of the 
country, and some, I trust, return with that light in 
their heads, and that love in their hearts, and that 
truth in their hands, which will operate as a little 
leaven, until the whole mass is leavened." 

The spirit of inquiry, so prevalent in the autumn 
of 1830, continued through the following winter and 
spring, and seemed to be spreading through the 
whole region ; and Mr. Judson sometimes felt alarm- 
ed, as he beautifully expresses himself, "like a per- 
son who sees a mighty engine beginning to move, 
over which he knows he has no control." 

During the several months that he occupied the 
garret, he perambulated the streets about sunrise, 
from day to day, partially, we suppose, for his 
health, but more particularly, as he himself states, 
to distribute tracts. He made it a rule, to give to 
none but those who asked for them ; and, when he 
first commenced, usually disposed of less than twen- 
ty. In a few months, they averaged more than three 
times that number, and he had reason to think that 
they were generally read and preserved. 

The anxiety of the disciples of Gaudama to know 
something about the true God, was strikingly man- 
ifested at a festival in honor of the false god, 
held near the close of the winter of 1830-31, and 



OF ADOXTRAM JUDSON. 



207 



witnessed by Mr. Judson. He speaks of it, and other 
matters of interest, in a letter written on the 4th of 
March, 1831, and addressed to a friend in Connecti- 
cut, who had sent him a donation of fifty dollars. 
After thanking this gentleman for his contribution, 
and expressing a wish that snch presents might be- 
come more frequent, and be made directly to the 
Board, he continues: 

I can spare time to write a few lines only, having 
a constant press of missionaiy work on hand ; add 
to which, that the weather is dreadfully oppressive at 
this season. Poor Boardman has just died under it, 
and Mrs. "Wade is nearly dead. Brother Wade and 
myself are now the only men in the mission that 
can speak and write the language ; and we have a 
population of above ten millions of perishing souls 
before us. I am persuaded that the only reason why 
all the dear friends of Jesus in America do not come 
forward in the support of missions, is mere want of 
information, (such information as they would obtain 
by taking any of the periodical publications.) If 
they could only see and know half what I do, they 
would give all their property, and their persons too. 

"The great annual festival is just past, during 
which multitudes came from the remotest parts of 
the country, to worship at the great Shway Dagong 
pagoda, in this place, where it is believed that sev- 
eral real hairs of Gaudama are enshrined. During 
the festival, I have given away nearly ten thousand 
tracts, giving to none but those who ask. I presume 



208 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



there have been six thousand applications at the 
house. Some come two or three months' journey, 
from the borders of Siam and China, — ' Sir, we hear 
that there is an eternal hell. "W" e are afraid of it. 
Do give ns a writing that will tell us how to escape 
it.' Others come from the frontiers of Cassay, a 
hundred miles north of Ava, — £ Sir, we have seen a 
writing that tells abont an eternal God. Are yon the 
man that gives away such writings? If so, J3ray 
give ns one, for we want to know the truth before we 
die.' Others come from the interior of the country, 
where the name of Jesus Christ is a little known, — 
4 Are you Jesus Christ's man ? Give us a writing 
that tells about Jesus Christ.' Brother Bennett works 
day and night at press ; but he is unable to supply 
us ; for the call is great at Maulmain and Tavoy, as 
well as here, and his types are very poor, and he has 
no efficient help. The fact is, that we are very weak, 
and have to complain that hitherto we have not 
been well supported from home. It is most distress- 
ing to find, when we are almost worn out, and are 
sinking, one after another, into the grave, that many 
of our brethren in Christ at home, are just as hard 
and immovable as rocks ; just as cold and repulsive 
as the mountains of ice in the polar seas. But what- 
ever they do, we cannot sit still, and see the dear 
Burmans, flesh and blood like ourselves, and like 
ourselves possessed of immortal souls, that will shine 
forever in heaven, or burn forever in hell, — we can 
not see them go down to perdition, without doing 
our very utmost to save them. And thanks be to 



OF ADOXIKAXC JTOSOX, 



209 



God, our labors are not in vain. "We have three 
lovely chinches, and about two hundred baptized 
converts, and some are in glory. A spirit of reli- 
gious inquiry is extensively spreading throughout 
the country, aud the signs of the times indicate that 
the great renovation of Burniah is drawing near. 
O, if we had about twenty more versed in the lan- 
guage, and means to spread schools, and tracts, and 
Bibles, to any extent, how happy I should be ! " 

In the summer of 1831, Mr. Judson went to Maul- 
main to take the place of Mr. Wade, who was obliged 
to leave on account of the ill health of his wife. 
They contemplated visiting the United States, and 
embarked for Calcutta with that intention ; but the 
ship in which they sailed was driven out of her 
course by violent gales, and put into Kyouk Phyoo, 
an Arracanese port, where Mrs. Wade's health so 
rapidly improved, that the visit to this country was 
abandoned. They returned to Maulmain in Septem- 
ber, and proceeded to Mergui, * in the province of the 
same name, and there labored six months, and then 
went to Bangoon. 

Previous to Mr. Judson's removal to Maulmain, 
the mission had been reinforced by the arrival of six 
missionaries, — Bev. Messrs. Francis Mason, Eugenio 

* Mergui is the capital of the province, and is about one hundred 
and fifty miles south of Tavoy. A native assistant had visited the 
place four years previous, by direction of the missionaries ; and while 
Mr. Wade was there, a small church was organized, and this assi.^taut 
appointed pastor. 



210 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



Kincaid, and J. T. Jones, and their wives. Mr. 
Mason arrived just before the death of Mr. Board- 
man, and took his place at Tavoy, where he is still 
laboring. Mr. Jones went to Rangoon, to take the 
place of Mr. Jndson ; returned to Maulmain in the 
early part of 1832, and ere long went to Siam, where 
he is now living with his third wife. His removal 
from Rangoon occasioned the transfer of Mr. Wade 
from Mergui thither. Mr. Kincaid was stationed 
awhile at Maulmain, and labored in connection with 
Messrs. Judson and Bennett. He had charge of the 
European church. His wife died on the 19th of 
December, 1831, only a few months after her arrival 
on foreign shores. Mr. Judson preached the funeral 
sermon, taking for his subject, the resurrection of the 
dead ; and many a veteran soldier, writes the smitten 
one, u wept over the awful solemnities of the grave." 
Mr. Kincaid removed to Rangoon in February, 1832. 

Soon after Mr. Judson's removal to Maulmain, a 
school was opened for the purpose of teaching adults 
to read. It commenced with five pupils, two of 
whom were members of the church ; and by the first 
of November, ten weeks after its commencement, it 
numbered twenty. It prospered until its suspension, 
which was at the close of the year, its members 
generally having become fluent readers. 

On the 5th of September, Mr. Judson started for 
Wades ville, three or four day's journey from Maul- 
main. Mr. Wade had previously baptized some 
Karens there, and organized a church, which was 
now under the charge of an assistant named Moung 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



211 



Doot. Eight more were added on the 11th of the 
month. The next day Mr. Judson removed a short 
distance, to accommodate some converts who could 
not come to him, and he had the happiness of bap- 
tizing five more. He jonrneyed two or three days 
longer, caught the jungle fever, left the scene on the 
17th, and, returning to Maulmain, was laid up eight 
or ten days. 

On the 23d of October, baptism was administered 
to Moung Zah, " a pure Burman from that favored 
district below Ava, which is blest with the genuine 
impression, in stone, of the foot of Gaudama ! " Two 
weeks afterward, the hundredth member united with 
the European church, all of whose communicants, 
except the first fifteen, were baptized by Mr. Kincaid. 
Other departments of the mission there were being 
blessed. No less than one hundred and thirty-six 
were baptized at Maulmain in the year 1831. During 
the same period, five were added to the church in 
Rangoon, and seventy-six in Tavoy. Of the whole 
number, eighty-nine were foreigners, and one hun- 
dred and nine Karens. The remaining nineteen 
were Talings and Burmans.* 

During most of this time, Mr. Bennett was indus- 
triously engaged in the printing office ; and at least 
two hundred thousand copies of books and tracts 

* At the close of the year, Mr. Judson made out a table, exhibiting 
the number baptized in Burmah from the beginning of the mission, 
eighteen years before. The total was three hundred and seventy- 
three, of whom two hundred and sixty were natives. Eleven had 
been excluded, and the same number had died. 



212 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



had now been scattered through the realms of Buddh- 
ism, and were silently performing their mighty work. 

At the commencement of the year 1832, we find 
Mr. Judson journeying in the jungle, north and 
north-east of Maulmain. He spent the first two 
months almost entirely in following the Salwen, the 
Dagaing, and their several tributaries, in their sinuos- 
ities through the wilderness : halting, here and there, 
at little villages or clusters of houses ; collecting na- 
tive converts, and feeding them with the bread of 
eternal life ; baptizing such persons as requested the 
ordinance, and were thought to be proper subjects ; 
and pointing to the Lamb of God such as expressed 
a desire to behold him and live. Some of the disci- 
ples accompanied him, and were accustomed to pre- 
cede him in arriving at a village, and herald his 
approach to such as were interested in his mission. 
Sometimes he found the inhabitants of a place, 
almost as a body, ready to welcome him, and glad to 
receive his message ; at other villages, he met with 
inveterate opposition, every face being turned from 
him with frigid indifference. During the early part of 
these journey ings, he selected the site of a christian 
village, on the Dagaing, a few miles below Wades- 
ville, and laid its foundation by establishing a church. 
The name given to the place was Newville. About 
four weeks afterward, on the 4th of February, he 
selected the site for a similar community, on the 
banks of the Salwen, about sixty miles north of 
Maulmain; gave it the name of Chummerah, and 
appointed a native disciple to officiate there. This 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



213 



station was unhealthy, and was abolished in 1836, on 
account of the inhabitants abandoning the place. 

Mr. Judson returned to Maulmain on the 11th 
of February, having been absent six weeks. Du- 
ring this time, he had baptized twenty-five, and 
"registered about the same number of hopeful 
inquirers." 

The journal of Mr. Judson dining these travels in 
the jungle, abounds with interesting incidents and 
facts, strikingly illustrative of the power of truth. 
We will repeat a single anecdote, which he recorded 
soon after establishing the village of JNewville, and 
which shows the happy results of making tract-dis- 
tributors of the natives. A man and his wife, who 
resided in the jungle, and had never seen a foreign 
missionary, nor had an opportunity to be baptized, 
had obtained the blessed " writing " and died in the> 
faith. The husband, a short time before his death, 
requested his surviving friends to lay the " Yiew of 
the Christian Eeligion " on his quieted breast, and 
bury it with him. 

About the first of March, Mr. Judson resolved to 
make another tour among the Karens on the Sal wen ] 
and we conclude this chapter with some extract?, 
from his journal, kept on the occasion. They pre- 
sent a vivid picture of missionary life in the jungle ? 

March 10. — Went on to the month of the Yer. 
being, and as far as the great log, which prevents a 
boat from proceeding further. Providentially, met 
with Wah-hai, of whom I have heard a good report 



214 



THE MISSIONARY LAEOES 



for some time. He was happy to see us, and we 
were happy to examine and baptize him. We then 
visited the village, whence they formerly sent a re- 
spectful message desiring us to go about our busi- 
ness, and found some attentive listeners. 

11th. Lord's day. — Again took the main river, 
and soon fell in with a boat, containing several of the 
listeners of yesterday, among whom was one man, 
who declared his resolution to enter the new religion. 
We had scarcely parted with this boat, when we met 
another, full of men, coming down the stream ; and, 
on hailing to know whether they wished to hear the 
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, an elderly man, the 
chief of the party, replied, that he had already heard 
much of the gospel, and there was nothing he de- 
sired more, than to have a meeting with the teacher. 
Our boats were soon side by side ; where, after a 
short engagement, the old man struck his colors, and 
begged us to take him into port, where he could 
make a proper surrender of himself to Christ. We 
accordingly went to the shore, and spent several 
hours very delightfully, under the shade of the over- 
hanging trees, and the banner of the love of Jesus. 
The old man's experience was so clear, and his desire 
for baptism so strong, that, though circumstances 
prevented our gaining so much testimony of his good 
conduct, since believing, as we usually require, we 
felt that it would be wrong to refuse his request. A 
lad in his company, the person mentioned January 
30th, desired also to be baptized. But, though he 
had been a preacher to the old man, his experience 



OF ADONEBAM JTJDSON, 



215 



was not so decided and satisfactory ; so that we re- 
jected him for the present. The old man went on 
his way, rejoicing alond, and declaring his resolution 
to make known the eternal God, and the dying love 
of Jesus, on all the banks of the Yoon-za-len, his 
native stream. 

The dying words of an aged man of God, when 
he waved his withered, death-struck arm, and ex- 
claimed, " Tlie best of all is, God is with us" I feel 
in my very soul. Yes, the Great Invisible is in these 
Karen wilds. That mighty Being, who heaped up 
these craggy rocks, and reared these stupendous 
mountains, and poured out these streams in all direc- 
tions, and scattered immortal beings throughout 
these deserts — He is present, by the influence of his 
Holy Spirit, and accompanies the sound of the gos- 
pel, with converting, sanctifying power. " The best 
of all is, God is with usP 

" In these deserts let me labor, 
On these mountains let me tell, 
How he died — the blessed Saviour, 
To redeem a world from Hell." 

12. — Alas, how soon is our joy turned into mourn- 
ing. Mah Nyah-ban, of whom we all had such a 
high opinion, joined her husband, not many days 
after their baptism, in making an offering to the 
demon of diseases, on account of the sudden, alarm- 
ing illness of their youngest child ; and they have 
remained ever since in an impenitent, prayerless 
state ! They now refuse to listen to our exhortation, 



216 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



and appear to be given over to hardness of heart and 
blindness of mind. I was, therefore, obliged, this 
morning, to pronounce the sentence of suspension, 
and leave them to the mercy and judgment of God. 
Their case is greatly to be deplored. They are quite 
alone in this quarter; have seen no disciples since 
we left them, and are surrounded with enemies, 
some from Maulmain, who have told them all man- 
ner of lies, and used every method to procure and 
perpetuate their apostacy. When 1 consider the evi- 
dence of grace which they formerly gave, together 
with all the palliating circumstances of the case, I 
have much remaining hope, that they will yet be 
brought to repentance. I commend them to the 
prayers of the faithful, and the notice of any mis- 
sionary who may travel this way. In consequence 
of the advantage which Satan has gained in this vil- 
lage, the six hopeful inquirers whom we left here 
have all fallen off ; so that we are obliged to retire 
with the dispirited feelings of beaten troops. 

Returned down the river, — reentered the Yen- 
being, — had another interview with the listeners of 
yesterday, — met with a Taling doctor from Kan- 
hlah, near Maulmain, who listened all the evening 
with evident delight. 

13th. — : Spent the day and night at Zatzan's, See- 
hais, and the village of Laidan, where we failed of 
finding Mah Kee-kah ; but found her parents, who 
listened well. In these parts, I leave a considerable 
number of hopeful inquirers. May the Lord bless 



OF ADOXIEAM JTJD60N. 



217 



the seed sown, and give us the pleasure of reaping a 
plentiful harvest at no very distant period. 

17th. — Betiirned np the river to Chnmmerah. In 
the evening, had a considerable assembly of disci- 
ples, preparatory to the administration of the Lord's 
supper. 

ISth. Lord's day. — Administered the Lord's sup- 
per to thirty-six commimicants, chiefly from villages 
on the Salwen. 



10 



OHAPTEK XVII. 



Arrival of Mr. Cutter — Messrs. Kincaid and Cutter visit Ava — Mr. and Mrs 
Wade sail for the United States — Arrival .of Messrs. Brown and Webb, and 
Miss Harrington — Mr. Judson completes the Translation of the Bible — Mar- 
ries Mrs. Boardman — Return of Mr. and Mrs. Wade with Messrs. Howard, 
Comstock, Dean, and Osgood, and Miss Gardner — Mr. Judson's Labors — 
Mr. Malcom's Visit — Growth of the Churches. 

For a year and a half after Mr. Judson's return 
from Chummerah, there were but few if any inci- 
dents connected with his life, sufficiently important 
to be inserted in the condensed outline we present. 
The mission continued to prosper, and some import- 
ant changes took place at the several stations, which 
it is proper to note. 

In the spring of 1832, Mr. Bennett w r as joined by 
Mr. Oliver T. Cutter, a printer, who took with him a 
power press. In April of the same year, Mr. Ben- 
nett began the publication of the New Testament, and 
the last sheet of an edition of three thousand cop- 
ies was printed on the 19th of December following. 
Before the power press could be set in operation,* 
or Mr. Cutter had learned the language, he lost his 



• This press was never of service to the mission. 



ADONIRAM JTBSOX, 



219 



instructor; arid about this time Mr. Bennett was 
obliged to remove temporarily to Eangoon to supply 
a vacancy occasioned by the departure of Mr. Kin- 
caid to Ava." The latter gentleman was joined at 
the capital in January, 1S31, by Mr. Cutter, vvho 
took with Mm a printing press. 

Immediately after a very profitable journey among 
tlie Karens in the Tenasserim provinces, made in the 
months of January and February, 1832, Mr. Wade 
repaired to Maulmain for his physical benefit. He 
there performed some important literary labor, mak- 
ing an alphabet and preparing a spelling book in 
the Karen tongue, and also translating Mrs. Judson's 
Burman Catechism and the precepts comprised in 
the " Yiew of the Christian Eeligion." Having done 



* He loft Rangoon on the 6th. of April, 1833, accompanied by- 
Mrs. Kincaid and her sister, and three native assistants, carrying with 
him seventeen thousand tracts and a large number of copies of the 
Gospels of Luke and John, of the Acts of the Apostles, and the 
Epistles. Their passage up the Irrawaddy was beset with dangers, 
yet marked by many occurrences of great interest, illustrative of the 
singular spirit of inquiry which, in spite of dread either of the gov- 
ernment or the priesthood, seemed every where to pervade the minds 
of the people. They landed at nearly three hundred towns and vil- 
lages along the banks of the stream, and, in nearly every place which 
they visited, they found some traces of the influence which had been 
exerted by the native christians, by tracts and books, or other agen^ 
cies connected with the mission. — Gammell's History of American 
Baptist Missions. 

Mr. Kincaid and the missionaries who had joined him at Ava, 
were driven out of the empire in 1837, by civil war, occasioned by 
the usurpation of the throne by a cruel and despotic prince named 
Tharawaddy, 



220 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



thus much for the Karens, he was attacked very se- 
verely with the liver complaint, which had contin- 
ued to trouble him at times; and as medicine had 
proved ineffectual, he resolved to try the experiment 
of a change of climate. Accordingly, he set sail for 
the United States the last of August, and arrived in 
this country the following May. His wife and two 
native converts accompanied him. 

On the 29th of June, 1832, the ship Fenelon sailed 
from Boston freighted with four bearers of light to 
the benighted; Rev. Thomas Simons, Mr. and Mrs. 
Royal B. Hancock, and Miss Sarah Cummings. 
They arrived at Maulmain on the first day of Jan- 
uary, 1833. Mr. Simons was stationed there as a 
preacher, and, through the mercy of God, is still 
permitted, like Messrs. Wade and Kincaid, and some 
other early missionaries, to invite the destitute and 
perishing to " buy wine and milk without money, 
and without price." Mr. Hancock, who was a printer 
and stereotyper, took with him two presses, a large 
quantity of type, and the materials for a type foun- 
dry. A spacious and substantial printing establish- 
ment was soon erected at Maulmain, where it still 
stands, and, by the thunderings of its presses, is 
shaking the pagodas of south-eastern Asia. 

Miss Cummings was an experienced teacher, and, 
taking with her a Burman who was to assist her in 
acquiring the language, she hastened to the new, se- 
cluded, and unhealthy station at Chummerah, where 
she spent a year and a half in her studies, and in 
superintending a school ; she then caught the jungle 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



221 



fever, and, returning to Maulniain, closed her eyes in 
death, on the 2d of August, 1834. 

In the early part of the summer of 1833, the 
mission was again reinforced, by the arrival of 
Rev. Messrs. Kathan Brown and Abner Webb, their 
wives, and Miss C. J. Harrington. The last was 
afterward married to Mr. Simons. Messrs. Brown 
and Webb studied the language at Maulmain, until 
the following J" anuary, when they removed to Ran- 
goon. Mr. Bennett then returned to Maulmain. 
About two years afterward, Mr. Brown, in company 
with Mr. Cutter, went to Assam, where both are now 
toiling. 

During the interval between the spring of 1832 
and the beginning of the year 1831, Mr. Judson re- 
mained almost constantly at Maulmain, and devoted 
the major portion of his time to translating the Old 
Testament. And at leno-th the sreat work was com- 
pleted ; the Burmans had the whole Bible in their 
own language. The last page was written on the 
last day of January, 1831. Mr. Judson had prose- 
cuted this gigantic labor amid "the changes of 
many years, often in solitude, in sickness, and in sor- 
row ; and now that it was completed, he dedicated it 
with pious gratitude, and an humble sense of its 
imperfections, to the service and the glory of God. 
The scene, as incidentally mentioned in his journal, 
is one of affecting interest and grandeur. Poets, 
historians, and moralists, have all recorded the feel- 
ings of exultation with which they have completed 
some work which they imagined c the world would 



222 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



not willingly let die,' But the missionary retires 
alone, and with the last leaf of his imperishable 
work in his hand, he prays for the forgiveness of 
Heaven on all the sins that have mingled with his 
labors, and devoutly commends it to the mercy and 
grace of God, to be used as an instrument in con- 
verting the heathen to Himself. Thus was the 
greatest of blessings conferred on the people of Bur- 
mah, and in its uncultivated soil was planted the 
tree of life, whose perennial leaves shall be for the 
healing of the nation. The translation received the 
emendations and corrections of its author, and has 
been pronounced by scholars and philologists ac- 
quainted with the Burman tongue, to be unusually 
accurate and perfect, — well fitted to transmit to suc- 
cessive generations the unadulterated word of God. 
The entire Bible was put immediately to press, and 
handsome appropriations were made by the Ameri- 
can Bible Society, to aid its publication." — Gam- 
mell's History of American Baptist Missions. 

In an eloquent discourse on the life and character 
of Mr. Judson, delivered in Boston, at the annual 
meeting of the American Baptist Missionary Union, 
in May, 1851, Bev. William Hague expresses the 
opinion that, " if, in a coming age, some Allston 
should wish to employ his pencil in picturing forth 
a single action that should express at once the great 
aim, the chosen means, and the true spirit of the 
modern missionary enterprise, he could scarcely se- 
lect a more fitting scene than that which Heaven 
witnessed with a smile, when Adoniram Judson was 



OF ADONIRAM JUDS02ST. 



223 



seen kneeling by the side of that table over which 
he had long bent his frame in studions application, 
holding in his hand the last leaf of the Burman 
Bible, with his eyes uplifted, and with a countenance 
radiant with joy, thanking God that his life had 
been spared to achieve this work, and imploring the 
Divine Spirit to make the silent page a messenger 
of life to many." 

Before finishing the translation of the Scriptures, 
Mr. Judson again visited the church at Chummerah, 
where he spent a few months, instructing its mem- 
bers and counseling inquirers ; and in March, 1834, 
we find him at Newville, on a similar errand : 

"March 12. — I have spent a few days in this 
place, where, on my arrival, I found the church con- 
sisting of twenty-five members only ; several having 
removed to the vicinity of the Chummerah church ; 
which, though of later origin, is now five or six times 
larger than the Kewville. Day before yesterday, 
and to-day, nine new members have been received 
at this place, and there are five or six others, with 
whom I feel satisfied ; but, for various reasons, their 
baptism has been deferred. In the number received, 
the most noticeable case is that of Lausau and wife. 
He is a petty chief, and possesses more personal in- 
fluence than any Karen yet baptized in these parts. 
He has been considering the christian religion, with 
approbation, for three years, but has had great diffi- 
culties to encounter, resulting from his family con- 
nections, and from his inveterate habit of tem/perate 



224 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



drinking. Until the present time, he could never 
resolve on adopting the principle of entire ab- 
stinence; but I trust that conviction of truth, and 
love of the Saviour, have enabled him to gain the 
victory. 

16. — On leaving Newville, it was my intention 
to go up the Patah river ; but, not finding sufficient 
water this season, I turned into the Houng-tarau; 
and, having visited a village, where there are several 
inquirers, returned to Maulmain." 

Soon after this date, he went to Tavoy, and was 
there married to Mrs. Boardman, on the 10th of 
April. 

The maiden name of Mr. Judson's second wife 
was Hall. She was born in Alstead, JSTew Hamp- 
shire, November 4th, 1803. While she was quite 
young, her parents removed to Danvers, Massachu- 
setts, and ere long to Salem, in the same state. In 
this place she received her education, and gave her 
hand to Mr. Boardman. This event occurred on the 
4th of July, 1825, in which month they sailed for 
Burmah. 

After the death of Mr. Boardman, she continued 
to conduct a school at Tavoy, and was remarkably 
successful in this sphere. Not unfrequently she 
made tours in remote rural sections of the province, 
taking with her an infant son, who was carried by 
her followers. Cheered by his musical prattle, she 
forded small streams, traversed broad marshes, urged 
her way through " wild mountain passes " and among 



OF ADONIRAM JtJDSON. 



225 



u craggy rocks and tangled shrubs of the jungle ; " 
and, in innumerable ways, exhibited a degree of per- 
severance, energy, and boldness, second only to her's 
who stood many long months at the door of the 
death-prison in Aya, and followed her husband on 
his " blood-tracked march " to the gloomy cells of 
Oung-pen-la. 

The school which Mrs. Judson had conducted at 
Tavoy, and which was suspended on her removal to 
Maulmain, was reorganized by Mrs. Wade on her 
return from America. 

Mr. Wade and his industrious, self-sacrificing com- 
panion, reentered the field in December, 1834, bring- 
ing with them eleven co-workers — Rev. Messrs. 
Hosea Howard, Grover S. Comstock, William Dean, 
Justus H. Yinton, and Mr. Sewall M. Osgood, with 
their wives, and Miss Ann P. Gardner. The last was 
a member of Mr. "Wade's family, and was connected 
with the Tavoy mission. In 1837, she was united 
in marriage with Rev. E. L. Abbott, who had been 
appointed a missionary two years previous, and who 
has been toiling for years among the Sgau Karens, ' 
his station being at Sandoway. Mr. Osgood was a 
printer, and took up his abode at Maulmain. Mr. 
Yinton spent a brief season at Chummerah, just be- 
fore its desertion ; and in 1836 we find him stationed 
at Balu Island, with ISTewville, Chetthingsville, and 
Bootah, for out-stations. Mr. Dean went, at first, to 
Siam ; and at Hongkong, China, is now, with some 
of his coadjutors, showing that, intellectually, there 

are " giants " in these days. Mr. Comstock settled at 
10* 



226 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Kyouk Plijoo, and died at Akyab in 1844. Mr. 
Howard went to Rangoon. 

"With the mission thus strengthened, well might 
Mr. Judson rejoice ! " My heart," he writes, " leaps 
for joy, and swells with gratitude and praise to God, 
when I think of brother Jones at Bankok, in the 
southern extremity of the continent, and brother 
Brown at Sudiya, in Assam, on the frontiers of 
China — immensely distant points — and of all the 
intervening stations, Ava, Eangoon, Kyonk Phyoo, 
Maulmain, and Tavoy, and the churches and schools 
which are springing np in every station and through- 
out the Karen wilderness. Happy lot, to live in 
these days ! O happy lot, to be allowed to bear a 
part in the glorious work of bringing an apostate 
world to the feet of Jesus ! Glory, glory be to 
God!" 

After translating the Bible, Mr. Judson devoted a 
large portion of his time, for font* or five years, to its 
revision, giving to this division of the labor more 
days than to translating. The last page of the first 
edition of the Old Testament was printed on the 29th 
of December, 1835. 

Aside from the task of revising, Mr. Judson was 
accustomed to read the proof sheets of the Scriptures, 
tracts, and other works, as they went to press ; to 
spend some hours each forenoon at the zayat ; to hold 
morning prayer meetings, with native assistants, 
whom he privately instructed from day to day, and 
then sent out to itinerate in the city, and in adjacent 
villages ; and to perform many other duties, which 



OP ADONTKAM JTTDSOX. 



227 



absorbed no inconsiderable part of his time, but 
which it might be deemed needless to detail. 

In the early part of 1836, the missionaries were 
visited by Eev. Howard Malcom, now president 
of Lewisbnro; University. He had been sent out 
by direction of the Board of Managers, to survey 
the mission field in Asia; learn the condition and 
wants of the several stations, and to consult with the 
missionaries in regard to the general interests of the 
cause in those parts. Fourteen missionaries accom- 
panied him. They were Rev. Messrs. Lovell Ingalls, 
James M. Haswell, Alanson Eeed, John L. Shuck, 
Robert D. Davenport, (printer,) Samuel S. Day, and 
their wives, Rev. Elisha L. Abbott, and Miss Eleanor 
Macomber. They were designated to the several 
missions in Asia. 

A ministerial conference was held at Maulmain, 
commencing on the 30th of March, five or six weeks 
after Mr. Malcom's arrival. The missionaries pres- 
ent were Messrs. Judson, "Wade, Bennett, Kincaid, 
Hancock, Mason, Yinton, Osgood, Howard, Haswell, 
Webb, and Abbott. w Every clay, except the Sab- 
bath," writes Mr. Malcom, u was diligently spent in 
the business, and, beside many important topics, 
which, though fully discussed, did not come to a 
formal vote, the following subjects were acted upon, 
besides minor ones : The establishment of a seminary 
for native assistants ; its location, temporary precep- 
tor, and course of studies, and by-laws ; new fields 
of labor proposed and described ; native schools ; 
polygamy among natives, and the management of 



223 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



such cases in regard to applicants for "baptism ; re- 
ducing the size of the Burman character ; the plan 
of giving English names to native children; board- 
ing schools, and the best mode of their endowment. 
Considerable time was taken up in designating the 
new missionaries to their fields of labor. They 
seem to be as jewels, which each was anxious to 
seize. Every man felt keenly the claims of his 
station or neighborhood, and longed to see more la- 
borers in what he deemed so promising a field. It 
was a noble strife of disinterested love, and, so small 
was the reinforcement, compared with the admitted 
wants, on all sides, that it was difficult to decide 
where aid should first be sent. 

"The next Sabbath, being the first in April, I 
preached to the brethren and sisters, by vote of the 
convocation. We met in the new and unfinished 
chapel, built for the native church. The building, 
though large for Burmah, is scarcely larger than 
many dining-rooms in India ; yet, as our little band 
arranged themselves in one corner, we seemed lost 
in the space. There was, however, moral power in 
the meeting ; and, when I reflected on the recent 
origin of the mission, its small beginnings, and its 
various dangers and hindrances, the company before 
me was a most refreshing sight. Here were twelve 
missionaries, besides Misses Gardner and Macomber, 
and the missionaries' wives. Elsewhere in the mis- 
sion were four evangelists and a printer, not comput- 
ing those in Siam. The text was, 1 Glorify ye the 
Lord in the fires and every heart seemed to say 



OF ADOXIEAM JUDSON. 



229 



Amen, as sentence after sentence came forth. It is 
delightful, preaching to greedy listeners ; and long 
had most of these been deprived of the refreshment 
of sitting under a gospel sermon. Mr. Judson had 
not heard a sermon in English for fourteen years. 

"As my eye rested on this loved little company, it 
was sweet to contemplate the venerable founder of th? 
mission, sitting there to rejoice in the growth of the 
cause he had so assiduously and painfully sustained. 
His labors and sufferings for years ; his mastery of 
the language ; his translation of the whole Word of 
God ; and his being permitted now to be the pastor 
of a church containing over a hundred natives, — 
make him the most interesting missionary now 
alive. What a mercy that he yet lives to devote 
to this people his enlarged powers of doing good! 
And we may hope he will very long be spared. His 
age is but forty-seven ; his eye is not dim ; not a 
gray hair shows itself among his full auburn locks ; 
his moderate-sized person seems full of vigor ; he 
walks almost every evening a mile or two at a cpiick 
pace, lives with entire temperance and regularity, 
and enjoys, in general, steadfast health. May a 
gracious God continue to make him a blessing more 
and more." 

About this period, the missionaries in British Bur- 
mah and Burmah Proper, were organized into four 
separate communities, designated the Maulmain, 
Rangoon, Tavoy, and Ava missions, each mission 
having one or more stations and out-stations con- 
nected with it. This step was taken for the more 



230 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



convenient associate action of the increasing band of 
missionaries. 

The progress of trnth in Burmah at this time, may 
be seen at a glance, by reference to the reported bap- 
tisms ! The whole number thus added to the several 
churches, in 1836, was three hundred and fifty-eight ; 
two hundred and six at the Rangoon mission, ninety- 
one at the Tavoy, fifty-four at the Maulmain, and 
seven at the Ava. The increase of the Maulmain 
churches the following year was nearly twice as 
great. 

Associated with Mr. Judson at Maulmain, in the 
beginning of 1838, were Messrs. Hancock and 
Osgood, five native preachers, and about thirty 
assistants, including twenty-five in the printing 
department. 

Mr. Bennett had removed to Tavoy, where he is 
still laboring, his department being among the Sgau 
Karens. He and Mr. Osgood, and some of the other 
printers, were early empowered to preach, often 
using their gifts profitably to the cause of Christ. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 



Retrospect of Mr. Judson's Career — Review of the Progress ui caiJiisi Mis- 
sions — Illness of Mr. Judson, Voyage to Calcutta and Return — Maulmain 
Theological Seminary, and other Schools — Revised Edition of the Burman 
Bible — Rangoon abandoned by the Missionaries — The Judson Family visit 
Calcutta and Serampore — Loss of a Member — The Survivors proceed to the 
Isle of France — Return to Maulmain. 

A quarter of a century had now elapsed since Mr. 
Judson first landed at Rangoon, and looked upon 
its multitudinous pagodas and other painful indices 
of the superstition of Burmah; and, without the 
ability to utter a sentence in the language of the 
people, began, single handed and unequipped, to 
prepare, and then to apply the agencies by which 
he hoped, eventually, to see the foundation of 
those monuments of idolatry loosened and under- 
mined. With the eye of faith steadily fixed on the 
divine commission, he commenced the work ; and, 
although nearly six years passed before he saw the 
clouds of paganism dispelled from a single mind, he 
neither fainted nor faltered. Feeling that he had an 
injunction from Heaven to toil for the good of the 
heathen, nothing could quench his love for their 



232 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



sqnls, nothing could drive from him the high purpose 
to win them to Christ. He had been expelled from 
one country by the intolerance of a jurisdiction 
nominally christian ; had been imprisoned in another 
by the same spirit, coupled with ignorance of the 
governmental relations of western nations ; had been 
exposed to perils, by sea and by land ; had passed a 
year and a half in chains, and part of this time in 
one of the gloomiest and most filthy death-prisons on 
the globe ; and had laid in the grave the last member 
of the little family that had participated with him 
in suffering and sorrow, at Oimg-pen-la. But, how- 
ever deep his afflictions ; however great his dan- 
gers ; however hard the gripe of intolerance and 
persecution ; his great spirit bore all, with a pa- 
tience and fortitude that drew exhaustless nour- 
ishment from the stores of sovereign grace. From 
out the ocean of grief, he rose with his heart 
subdued and his soul more sanctified ; he escaped 
from death with increased confidence in God, 
and better prepared to face other dangers ; and 
when divine Providence saw fit to shake off his 
chains, he renewedly dedicated his unshackled limbs 
to the service of missions, and resumed his labors 
with redoubled industry and almost superhuman 
zeal. 

Amid these disheartening circumstances, and a 
multitude of retarding influences, the glorious en j 
terprise on which he entered Burmah unbefriended 
and alone, though fluctuating at times, had made 
inspiring progress. He, who stood on the shores of 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



233 



the empire twenty-five years before, speechless in the 
Burman tongue, and without a grammar or diction- 
ary to aid him, had .become an eloquent preacher in 
the language of ten millions of heathen ; had given 
the votaries of Gaudama a faithful transcript of the 
word of the true God in their peculiar dialect ; had 
plunged into the jungle, reached the heart of the 
Burman dynasty, and scattered the seeds of truth 
around the golden foot; had personally organized 
little churches here and there, beneath the shadow 
of some towering pagoda; was rejoicing with the 
sweet assurance that the arches of heaven had rung 
more than a thousand times over the conversion of 
a soul to God, at some one of the stations or out- 
stations which he had seen established ; was associ- 
ated with nearly fifty missionaries from his native 
land, together with a multitude of native assistants ; 
and was now beholding scattered annually through 
the realms of Buddhism more than ten million pages 
of that Book, " whose leaves are for the healing of 
the nations." 

ISTor were the changes that had taken place in hea- 
then lands, or among the heathen tribes and errorists 
of christian lands, through the exertions of American 
Baptists, confined to Asia. He, who wrote from In- 
dia to his unknown " Baptist friends in the United 
States," asking them fur support before they had 
organized a society for promoting foreign missions, 
could now look over the globe and behold stations 
under the control and sustained by the contributions 
of his denomination, not only among the Burmese, 



234 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



the Siamese, the Chinese, the Karens, the Assamese, 
the Teloogoos, and other people of Asia — but at Li- 
beria, in Africa ; in Germany, Greece, and France, 
in Europe; at Hayti, in the West India Islands, and 
among twelve Indian tribes in the United States. 
The missionary society, which was organized in 
1814, to recognize him and his companion as mis- 
sionaries to Burmah, was now supporting twenty- 
three missions, embracing thirty-seven stations and 
thirty-two out-stations. Connected with these mis- 
sions were ninety-eight American missionaries, in- 
cluding printers and female teachers ; thirty-eight 
native preachers, and nearly as many native assist- 
ants, exclusive of those in the printing department ; 
thirty-eight churches ; between fifteen and sixteen 
hundred communicants, and from fifteen to twenty 
presses, which were printing the word of God in 
fifteen differ ent languages. 

Early in 1838, Mr. Judson was afflicted with an 
inflammation of the throat and lungs, which troubled 
him several months; and laboring under indisposi- 
tion from the same cause, in the spring of 1839, he 
took a sea voyage, hoping thereby to receive benefit. 
He sailed for Calcutta, and was so much relieved 
before arriving there, that he made a very brief so- 
journ. He was doubtless too impatient to be about 
his Master's business at Maulmain ; for, when he 
returned, in April, his friends could see but little 
improvement in his health. On hearing of his ill- 
ness, the Board invited him, as they had done once 
or twice before, to visit the United States. The 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSOK. 



235 



invitation reached him in August, 1839, at which 
time his complaint was in a relapse, and he was 
suffering very much. Under this circumstance, one 
would suppose he could have been induced to leave 
the field long enough to visit the land of his birth ; 
but he declined the invitation, saying to the Board, 
" I cannot persuade myself that it is my duty to 
leave my work at present, but to wait and see 
whether I shall well sustain the next rainy season. 
If, notwithstanding continued care, I should experi- 
ence a severe relapse, and my brethren should con- 
cur in the measure, I would avail myself of the 
invitation of the Board, as a last resort, and turn 
my face, with a clear conscience and many delight- 
ful anticipations toward my native land." 

In 1838, a seminary was established at Maulmain, 
for educating native converts of promising talents 
and suitable character, for the ministry, and Rev. 
Edward A. Stevens, who had been appointed a mis- 
sionary two years previous, took charge of it. He 
had been educated with direct reference to the duties 
of a theological teacher. Among his first pupils 
were a few Burman students, who had been con- 
nected with a similar institution established by Mr. 
Wade at Tavoy, soon after the session of the minis- 
terial convention at Maulmain, in 1836. The school 
at Tavoy, which was suspended in 1837, on account 
of Mr. Wade's illness, contained Burmans, Karens, 
Peguans, and one Hindoo, in all about eighteen or 
twenty pupils. The one at Maulmain was designed 
especially for the first-mentioned class, though others 



236 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



were at first admitted. A distinct Karen theologi- 
cal seminary was subsequently established there. It 
was necessary to have separate schools as soon as 
facilities could be obtained, on account of the differ- 
ence of the races above mentioned. Hence, at this 
period, we find, at the different and most important 
Burman stations, schools of various names and grades, 
not only for Burmans, Talings, and Karens, but also 
for the Eurasians or half-cast, having European 
fathers. In 1840, there were no less than eleven 
schools in operation, in connection with the Maul- 
main mission, which embraced six stations and three 
out-stations. During the early part of this year, the 
theological school contained ten pupils, which was 
about an average attendance for the first two or three 
years. Some idea of the kind of studies, and the 
method of teaching, may be gathered from a brief 
extract from the report of the school for the term 
ending in November, 1840 : 

" The studies pursued have been chiefly the New 
Testament, and a brief outline of ecclesiastical his- 
tory, given in the form of lectures. In the New 
Testament, the class has completed the Life of Christ, 
having gone through the thirty-five last sections of 
the work, together with the Epistles of Hebrews, 
James, first and second of Peter, first, second, and 
third of John, and the Epistle of Jude. The method 
of study has been the same as that heretofore 
pursued — -explanatory remarks being made, and 



OF ADONERAM JUDSON. 



237 



passages of Scripture given for reference, all which 
are required to be committed to writing. 

6 'The lectures on ecclesiastical history embraced a 
brief outline of the history of the church from the 
birth of Christ to the present time. The class were 
required to note them down as delivered, and, since 
the course was completed, have been occupied a part 
of each day in studying what they had thus written. 
The subject being one of novelty to them, and much 
time being necessarily occupied in securing a fair 
and correct copy of the lectures, they have studied 
the history only as far as the account of Mahomet. 
They seemed interested in the study, and I trust the 
time devoted to it has not been misapplied." 

Owing to the want of funds,- and other causes, this 
institution did not prosper so well as the missionaries 
had hoped it would, and was suspended from the 
close of the next year until 1844. 

%r. Judson completed the revision of the Burman 
Bible in the autumn of 1840, and the last sheet was 
put to press on the 24th of October. The first edi- 
tion had been printed in three large octavo volumes ; 
the second appeared in one volume quarto. In order 
to make the latter as correct as possible, he had con- 
sulted the latest and most reliable works of biblical 
critics, and selected and incorporated the richest 
fruits of philological minds, in Europe and America. 
He says, in regard to this edition : 

u In the first edition of the Old Testament, I paid 
too much regard to the critical emendations of Lowth, 



238 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Horsley, and others. In the present edition, I have 
adhered more strictly to the Plebrew text. In my 
first attempts at translating portions of the New 
Testament, above twenty years ago, I followed Gries- 
bach, as all the world then did ; • and thongh, from 
year to year, I have found reason to distrust his 
authority, still, not wishing to be ever changing, I 
deviated but little from his text, in subsequent edi- 
tions, until the last ; in preparing which I have fol- 
lowed the text of Knapp, (though not implicitly,) as 
upon the whole the safest and best extant ; in con- 
sequence of which, the present Burmese version of 
the New Testament accords more nearly with the 
received English. 

"As to the merits of the translation, I must leave 
others to judge. I can only say, that though I have 
seldom done anything to my own satisfaction, I am 
better satisfied with the translation of the New Tes- 
tament than I ever expected to be. The language 
is, I believe, simple, plain, intelligible ; and I have 
endeavored, I hope successfully, to make every sen- 
tence a faithful representation of the original. As 
to the Old Testament, I am not so well satisfied. 
The historical books are, perhaps, done pretty well ; 
but the poetical and prophetical books are, doubtless, 
susceptible of much improvement, not merely in 
point of style, but in the rendering of difficult pas- 
sages, about which the most eminent scholars are not 
yet agreed. 

" I commend the work, such as it is, to God, to 
the church in Burmah, and to my successors in this 



OF ADQXI&AM JVDSOX". 239 

department of labor, begging them not to spare my 
errors, and yet not prematurely to correct a supposed 
error, without consulting the various authors which 
I have consulted, and ascertaining the reasons of my 
position ; and especially not to adopt a plausible cor- 
rection, in one instance, without inquiring whether 
it is admissible and advisable in all parallel and 
similar passages. 

" In prosecuting the work, I have derived valuable 
aid from several of my missionary brethren, espe- 
cially from brother "Wade formerly, and brother 
Jones, now of Bangkok, — latterly from the brethren 
Mason, Comstock, and Stevens. Of several hundred 
suggestions that have been sent me from different 
quarters. I have sooner or later adopted by far the 
greater part, though in many cases with some modi- 
fication. Nor ought I to forget my native brother. 
Motmg En. my faithful fellow-laborer lor many years, 
even before the present revision was begim. — one of 
our most judicious and devoted assistants." 

In the early part of an important change 

took place at the Rangoon mission. For two or three 
years previous, the spirit of intolerance had strongly 
prevailed at times, and the churches in all parts of 
Barman Proper stood in a precarious condition. In 
1S3S, affairs between the British and Burman govern- 
ments assumed a warlike aspect ; and Messrs. Abbott 
and Simons, who were temporarily at Rangoon, left 
the place in November, and went to Maul main. 
About a year after, the former returned in company 
with Mr. Kincaid, who had known the viceroy at 



240 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Ava. He was a tolerant ruler, and had invited 
these missionaries to Rangoon, and now urged them 
to remain. His virtues caused his overthrow, for he 
lost his office by his kind treatment of these men of 
God. The new viceroy was despotic, cruel, and in- 
tolerant, and soon after his arrival, Messrs. Kincaid 
and Abbott retired to Maulmain, leaving Burmah 
Proper without an American missionary. In a short 
time, they both went to Arracan. 

The native church at Rangoon remained under 
the pastoral charge of Ko Thah-a, but languished on 
account of the absence of the missionaries. Mr. 
Vinton visited the station in 1842, and again in 1844. 
The last time, he was accompanied by Messrs. Ste- 
vens and Ingalls, the last of whom had been stationed 
at Mergui. They went to see what encouragement 
there was for missionary effort at this old original 
station, round which the affections of Mr. Judson and 
his earlier, living associates were strongly entwined. 
With much reluctance, they were forced to decide 
that it was inexpedient, just then, to attempt to 
reestablish the mission. 

On the 26th of June, 1841, Mr. Judson started, in 
ill health, on another sea voyage, taking his family 
with him. He first landed at Calcutta ; and, pro- 
ceeding to Serampore, communicated the following 
intelligence to the Board, from the latter place, the 
last of J uly : 

"I have had a very severe trial in the sickness of 
my family, all of whom, with the exception of one 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



241 



of the children, have been prostrated for several 
months, and several of them repeatedly at the point 
of death. We came here at the nrgent importunity 
of the doctors, and my missionary associates. The 
voyage had a beneficial effect on all the invalids, 
especially Mrs. Jndson; but, since onr arrival here, 
we have been subject to relapses, so that we despair 
of recovery, without some further change. In these 
circumstances, we regard it as a very providential 
mercy, that the pious captain of a vessel proceeding 
to the Isle of France, and thence to Maulmain, in- 
vited us to go with him in such a very kind manner 
as assures us that the circuitous voyage will not cost 
the mission more than the vovage direct. "We ex- 
pect to leave this in a few days, and hope to be in 
Maulmain by the end of October. And may God 
bless the double voyage before us, and the interven- 
ing residence of a few weeks at the Isle of France, 
to our recovery to health, that we may resume our 
work with renewed vigor, and devote the remnant 
of our spared lives to the service of Christ among 
Burmans. My own health is pretty good, except 
that my lungs have never recovered their natural 
soundness and strength, and I am obliged to use 
them with great care in public speaking. In com- 
mon conversation, I have not the smallest incon- 
venience. And this is a great mercy, considering 
the state to which I was once reduced. I never 
realized what a great privilege it is to be able to use 
the voice for Christ, until I was deprived of it. And 
now, when I would fain break out as usual, the 
11 



242 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



weakness of the flesh does not second the -willingness 
of the spirit. I can still say, "Well, it is a mercy 
undeserved, to be able to go thus far. And one is 
more willing also to be disabled when there are 
others ready to carry on the work. I esteem it the 
crowning mercy of my life, that not only the chief 
ends I contemplated on becoming a missionary are 
attained ; but I am allowed to see competent, faith- 
ful, and affectionate successors actively engaged in 
the work. In their hands I am happy to leave it, or 
rather in the hands of Christ, who carried it on be- 
fore we were born, and while we were in arms 
against him, and will carry it on more gloriously, 
when we repose in the grave, and in paradise. Glory 
be to Him alone. 

"We are obliged to leave our darling youngest 
child, aged one year and seven months, in the mis- 
sion burial ground of Serampore. His old com- 
plaint, which had never been effectually removed, 
came on with fearful violence, and he died in con- 
vulsions, on the 30th ultimo. The agony of witness- 
ing the dying struggles of a beloved child, and 
beholding the last imploring looks, unable to afford 
the smallest relief, none can know but a bereaved 
parent. Mrs. J. and myself have frequently endured 
this fiery trial, and now, with bleeding hearts, we 
must turn away from the grave of dear Henry, and 
pursue our melancholy way, in hope that the life 
of the mother and the remaining children may yet 
be spared." 



OF ADONTRAM JTJDSOlff, 



2i3 



ALr. Judson proceeded with the surviving members 
of Ms family to the Isle of France, where he re- 
mained until the ISth of October. \Yriting to the 
Board, two or three weeks before leaving, at which 
time all his family but the oldest son were in com- 
fortable health, he says : ; * I hope that, whatever 
may be the late of some of the children, we shall be 
able, ere long, to return to our station, and resume 
our labors with renewed strength during the period 
that may yet be allowed us to labor on earth."" 

He arrived at Maulmain on the 10th of December, 
with his son in a convalescent state, and the rest of 
the family in good health. 



CHAPTER XIX. 



Mr. Judson commences a Burman Dictionary — Labors of his Associates — Con- 
dition of the Maulmain Mission Churches — Printing — Maulmain Mission- 
ary Society — Arrival of Messrs. Binney and Bullard — Baptismal Scene, &c. 
Illness of Mrs. Judson — Mr. Judson decides to visit America. 

In May, 1842, Mr. Judson commenced another 
great literary undertaking, the preparation of a com- 
plete dictionary of the Burman language. Prior to 
this, besides attending to the publication of the 
revised edition of the Bible, and the pastoral duties 
of the Burman church, he had translated the Pil- 
grim's Progress, and performed other and scarcely 
lighter literary tasks. He began the dictionary with 
much reluctance, and after repeated invitations from 
the Board. The compilation which had been used 
since 1826, was very imperfect, and no one had felt 
more sensibly than he, the need of a fuller and more 
correct work ; yet it was his wish, when he left Bur- 
mah Proper, in 1826, to avoid literary and scientific 
pursuits as much as possible, and devote himself 
directly to the preaching of the gospel. Hence, after 
revising the Bible, he had " resolved and re-resolved " 



ADONERAM JUDSON. 



245 



never to touch the dictionary ; but " it is not in man 
that walketh to direct his steps." Providence had 
decreed that he should commence it ; and seeing the 
gates of Burmah Proper barred against him and his 
coadjutors, and the Maulmain mission well supplied 
with laborers, the way at length seemed clear to 
make a beginning. With reference to this work, he 
thus writes, under date of July 13th, 1843 : 

" We are apt to magnify the importance of any 
undertaking in which we are warmly engaged. Per- 
haps it is from the influence of that principle, that, 
notwithstanding my long cherished aversion to the 
work, I have come to think it very important ; and 
that, having seen the accomplishment of two objects, 
on which I set my heart when I first came to the 
East, — the establishment of a church of converted 
natives, and the translation of the Bible into their 
language, — I now beguile my daily toil with the pros- 
pect of compassing a third, which may be compared 
to a causeway, designed to facilitate the transmission 
of all knowledge, religious and scientific, from one 
people to the other. 

" It was my first intention to make a single work, 
Burmese and English ; but, as I proceeded, I dis- 
covered many reasons for constructing a double work, 
in two parts, the first Burmese and English, the sec- 
ond English and Burmese. I hope, by daily unin- 
terrupted labor, to have the whole ready for the 
press by the end of 1845. Not, indeed, that I count 
on living so long. Above thirty years spent in a 



246 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



tropical climate, (to-day is the twenty-ninth anniver- 
sary of my arrival in Burmah,* leaves but little 
ground to build future plans upon. But I feel it my 
duty to plod on while daylight shall last, looking out 
for the night, and ready to bequeath both the plod- 
ding and the profit to any brother who shall be wil- 
ling to carry on and complete the work, when I shall 
have obtained my discharge." 

In the same letter, Mr. Judson apologizes to the 
Board for the rareness and brevity of his communi- 
cations, during the years he was engaged in trans- 
lating and revising the Burman Bible, and the first 
year of his engagement on the dictionary. The ab- 
sorbing and mentally fatiguing nature of these tasks 
and their unfruitfulness in epistolary topics, seemed 
to justify his silence. lie says : " I never think, 
without some uneasiness, of the unfrequency of my 
communications to the Board ; and if I had not an 
apology at hand, I . should feel self-condemned. A 
person employed in direct missionary work among 
the natives, especially if his employ is somewhat 
itinerant, can easily make long and interesting jour- 
nals. The first epithet, at least, may be applied to 
some of my early communications. But it has been 
my lot, for many years past, to spend most of my 
time over the study table, and my itinerating has 

* Professor Gam m ell states, that the ship which took Mr. and Mrs. 
Judson to Burmah, came to anchor in the harbor of Rangoon, on the 
14th of the month, which day is more properly the anniversary of 
their arrival. 



OF ADOSTEA3I JUDSOX. 



247 



scarcely extended beyond the limits of my morning 
walks, and the precincts of the mission enclosure." 

TThile Mr. Judson was engaged on the dictionary, 
and attending to his pastoral duties, his associates in 
the same mission, male and female, were, perhaps, 
equally as industrious in their several positions. Mr. 
Stevens had the charge of the English church at 
Mauhnain, and also of the Pwo Karen church at 
Dong Yan. In his connection with the former body, 
he was assisted by Mr. Simons, who was conducting 
the Eurasian boarding school. Mr. Yinton was la- 
boring alternately in the Sgau Karen department at 
Maulmain, and at the Karen stations. Mr. J. H. 
Chandler, a machinist, who was appointed in 1840, 
had charge of the printing and binding department, 
but was transferred to the Siam mission in 1S43. 
Mr. Osgood managed the secular concerns of the 
mission, and, after the departure of Mr. Chandler, 
superintended the printing and binding establish- 
ment. Mr. Howard managed the Burman boarding 
school. Mr. Haswell was at Amherst, where he 
had been stationed several years, and was devoting 
himself principally to the Peguan people, in whose 
language he was translating the Scriptures. The 
church, of which he was pastor, contained, in 1S43, 
between thirty and forty members. The number 
baptized into the seven churches connected with the 
Maulmain mission during the year ending July 1st, 
1343, was seventy-eight. Eorty-one died the same 
year of the cholera, which raged in several places 
in the empire. It was still more fatal among the 



248 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



Rangoon and other Karens of Burmah Proper, of 
whom it is estimated that the loss amounted to fiye 
hundred. Several of these were native assistants. 
The number added to the Maulmain churches the 
following year, on a profession of faith, was one hun- 
dred and fifty-nine. During the same period, twelve 
were added to the Karen church at Eangoon, being 
baptized by Mr. Vinton while on a visit, of which 
we have previously spoken. 

For a few years after the withdrawal of the mis- 
sionaries from Burmah Proper, the urgency for print- 
ing at Maulmain was not so great as it had been, 
and the number of books and tracts distributed 
was comparatively small. The printing, in 1843, 
amounted to only forty-two thousand copies, and one 
hundred and forty-six thousand pages, though the 
issues were comparatively larger." The number of 
books and other tracts printed the following year 
was five thousand; the number issued was about 
twenty-seven thousand. Two thousand of the copies 
printed in 1844 were school books ; the rest were of 
a religious character. The whole number of pages 
printed at the Maulmain station prior to July, of 
this year was 60,890,900. 

Several years previous to this time, a missionary 
society had been formed at Maulmain, the members 
being mostly connected with the English church. 



* " About one half the issues from the dej)ositor y were to Maul- 
main, and the remainder to Amherst and the three stations in Arra- 
can " — Ramree^ Akyab, and Sandoway. 



OF ADONIEAM JTJDSON. 



249 



Its contributions, in 1844, amounted to between 
three and four thousand rupees ; and its seventh 
annual report, being for that year, shows that twen- 
ty-five native assistants were then in its employ. 
They were at different stations and out-stations, 
among the Peguans, Burmans, Pwo Karens, and 
Sgau Karens. The English church was at that 
time in a highly prosperous condition, which is no 
doubt to be attributed, in part, to the liberality 
of its members, as exhibited above. Nothing is 
truer than the remark of Horace Smith, that, " by 
bestowing blessings on others, we entail them on 
ourselves." 

In the spring of 1844, the Maulmain mission was 
reinforced by the arrival of Messrs. Joseph G. Bin- 
ney and Edwin B. Bullard, and their wives.* Their 
designation was to the Karen department. Both 
gentlemen were preachers, and the former was also 
a teacher. The latter died at Maulmain on the 5th 
of April, 1847, one day less than two years after his 
arrival. Mrs. Bullard became the second wife of 
Mr. Mason, with whom she is now toiling at Tavoy. 

Mr. Mason visited Maulmain in February, 1844; 
and his journal at that period is rich in the fruits of 
observation and reflection. The following extract is 
not wholly irrelevant to our subject: 

" On Sabbath forenoon, I preached in Burman for 

* Mr. Thomas S. Ranney and wife, who are now stationed at 
Maulmain, entered the work of missions the same spring, at Tavoy. 
He is a printer. 

11* 



250 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



Mr. Judson, and he baptized two very respectable 
Burman men at the close of worship. One of them 
has occasioned more noise in town than any other 
individual, I am told, that has ever forsaken idolatry. 
He is a respectable merchant ; but his wife has left 
him and taken his property, and his friends have 
used every possible means in their power to prevent 
his being baptized. There was a great multitude at 
his baptism, and Mr. Judson anticipated some dis- 
turbance ; but all passed off quietly. Mr. Judson 
rose up at the close of the sermon, as the people 
crowded into the chapel, and addressed them with 
such tact, that, whatever their intentions might have 
been, they were left without any pretence for making 
trouble. At the immersion of the first candidate, a 
laugh was raised by the multitude, but Mr. Judson 
shook his finger at them, and when the second was 
baptized all were as silent as the grave. 

" At English worship in the evening, I saw several 
English officers among the despised Anabaptists, as 
the English call us, a sight not often seen in English 
congregations. Three of them, at least, appeared 
like brother missionaries, in everything but their red 
coats. One of them, the paymaster of the regiment, 
w r as baptized in the West Indies, and has turned 
missionary literally. He has obtained a Burman 
assistant that speaks a little English, and he goes out 
daily preaching, and reading, and distributing books 
and tracts. He stood talking with me for half an 
hour about his excursions, and evidently feels as 
much interest in his work as any missionary I ever 



OF ADOXIEAM JTDSOIT. 



251 



saw. If he be a specimen of the "West India mis- 
sionaries' converts, the wisest thins: thev can do is to 
leave their enemies, as David did Shimei, 4 to cnrse 
on ; ' and imitate their divine Master, who, when he 
was reviled, c opened not his month.' " 

In December, 1844, Mrs. Judson gave birth to her 
eighth child by her second husband. Abont this 
time, she was attacked with chronic diarrhoea, a dis- 
ease to which she had been subject since her arrival 
in Bnrmah. She had been a great sufferer from this 
source, but the present seemed to be the severest 
attack of all. It continued to progress, in spite of 
medical skill and a short voyage along the Tenasserini 
coast ; and it at length became evident that she must 
leave the tropics, or go directly to the grave. Such 
being Mr. Judson's opinion, and thinking that a long 
voyage might possibly be the means of her restora- 
tion, he decided to embark for his native land. His 
intentions were made known to the Board by the 
following communication, which is dated, Maulinain 
April 13, 1845 : 

"The hand of God is heavy upon me. The com- 
plaint to which Mrs. Judson is subject has become 
so violent, that it is the unanimous opinion of all the 
medical men, and, indeed, of all our friends, that 
nothing but a voyage beyond the tropics can possibly 
protract her life beyond the period of a few weeks, 
but that such a voyage will, in all probability, ensure 
her recovery. All medical skill has been exhausted. 
She has spent six weeks with our commissioner and 



252 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



his lady, in a trip down the coast, touching at Taroy 
and Mergui, and returned weaker and nearer the 
grave than when she set out. She is willing to die 7 
and I hope I am willing to see her die, if it be the 
divine will ; but though my wife, it is no more than 
truth to say, that there is scarcely an individual 
foreigner now alive 7 who speaks and writes the Bur- 
mese tongue so acceptably as she does ; and I feel 
that an effort ought to be made to save her life. 1 
have long fought against the necessity of accompany- 
ing her ; but she is now so desperately weak and 
almost helpless, that all say it would be nothing but 
savage inhumanity to send her off alone. The three 
younger children, the youngest but three months and 
4 half old, we must leave behind us, casting them ? 
as it were, on the waters, in the hope of finding them 
again after many days. The three elder, Abby Ann ? 
Adoniram, and Elnathan, we take with us, to leave 
in their parents' native land. These rendings of 
parental ties are more severe, and wring out bitterer 
tears from the heart's core, than any can possibly 
conceive, who have never felt the wrench. But I 
hope I can say with truth, that I love Christ above 
all ; and am striving in the strength of my weak 
faith, to gird up my mind to face and welcome all 
his appointments. And I am much helped to bear 
these trials, by the advice and encouragement of all 
my dear brethren and sisters of the mission. 

"It is another great trial to leave my dear church 
and people. I never knew, till now, how much I 
loved them, and how much they loved me. 



OF ADOXERAM JTDSON. 



253 



'And 'tis to love, our farewells ovre 
All their emphasis of woe.' 

But I leave tliem in the hands of my dear brethren, 
and there are no persons in the world to whom I 
should be so willing to commit so dear a charge. 

"Another great trial, not so much as it regards feel 
ing, as it regards the anticipated result of long pro- 
tracted labor, is the interruption which the heavy 
work of the Burmese dictionary, in which I have 
been engaged for two or three years, must sustain ; 
and such is the state of my manuscripts, that if I 
should die before the work is completed, or at least 
carried forward to a much more advanced stage, all 
my previous labor would be nearly or quite lost. 
But I am endeavoring to obviate this difficulty in 
some degree, by taking with me my two assistants in 
that department, whose hearts God has graciously 
inclined to leave their families and accompany me. 
They are both christians, — the one a settled charac- 
ter, a convert of long standing, formerly a govern- 
ment writer in Rangoon ; the other a nephew of the ' 
late premier of the court of Ava. a person of noble 
extraction, and though not a tried christian, I hope 
a sincere one. And it is my purpose to devote some 
hours every day, whether on the sea or land, to the 
work mentioned. I shall be induced to persevere in 
this purpose while in America, from the fact, that I 
am unable to travel about the country as an agent, 
and preach in the English language. The course 
that I have uniformly pursued, ever since I became 



254 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



a missionary, lias been rather peculiar. In order to 
become an acceptable and eloquent preacher in a 
foreign language, I deliberately abjured my own. 
When I crossed the river, I burnt my ships. For 
thirty-two years, I have scarcely entered an English 
pulpit, or made a speech in that language. Whether 
I have pursued the wisest course, I will not contend ; 
and how far I have attained the object aimed at, I 
must leave for others to say. But whether right or 
wronff, the course I have taken cannot be retraced. 
The burnt ships cannot now be reconstructed. From 
long desuetude, I can scarcely put three sentences 
together in the English language. I must, therefore, 
beg the Board to allow me a quiet corner, where I 
can pursue my work with my assistants, undisturbed 
and unknown. 

" This request I am induced to urge, from the fur- 
ther consideration, that my voice, though greatly re- 
covered from the affection of the lungs, which laid me 
aside from preaching nearly a year, is still so weak 
that it can only fill a small room ; and whenever I 
attempt to raise it above the conversational tone, the 
weak place gives way, and I am quite broken down 
again for several weeks. I hope, therefore, that no 
one will try to persuade me to be guilty of such 
imprudence while in America ; but since there are 
thousands of preachers in English, and only five 
or six Burmese preachers in the whole world, I 
may be allowed to hoard up the remnant of my 
breath and lungs, for the country where they are 
most needed. 



OF ADOXEEAM JTDSOX. 



255 



I have engaged a passage in the Paragon to 
London, for myself, wife, three children, and two 
assistants, for sixteen hundred rnpees. I shonld have 
preferred a passage direct, bnt circnmstances have 
rendered it impossible." 



CHAPTER XX 



Embarkation of the Judson Family for the United States — Hopes, and Fears, 
and Changes of Plans at the Isle of France —Voyage continued — Mrs. Jud- 
son's last Hours — Her Death, and Burial at St. Helena — Mr. Judson arrives 
in Boston — His Reception there — Dr. Sharp's Address — An Incident. 

Thirty-three years had passed since the Caravan 
weighed anchor in the harbor of Salem, and Mr. 
Judson "bent his course to India, when, on the 26th 
of April, 1845, he turned his face toward the land 
of his birth, which he had often thought he should 
see no more. 

The bracing air of the Indian ocean had a happy 
influence on Mrs. Judson ; and, on arriving at the 
Isle of France, she had so much improved that the 
two native assistants were sent back to Manlmain, 
Mr. Judson intending soon to follow them. His 
wife and the three children were to proceed, and, 
anticipating a separation from her husband on that 
a green islet," she penned those familiar and beau- 
tiful lines entitled " The Parting," concluding with 
the following stirring and highly poetic injunction 
to the hero of a thirty years' campaign, and a thou- 
sand victorious conflicts with Error, in the jungle : 



> 



OF AD02TCRAM JUDSON. 



257 



" Then gird thine armor on, love, 
If or faint thou by the way, 
Till Budclh shall fall, and Burmah's sons 
Shall own Messiah's sway." 

The vessel remained at the Isle of France three 
weeks, and, before the day arrived for sailing, her 
disease relapsed, and Mr. Judson deemed it advis- 
able to continue with her. While doubling the 
Cape, she became weaker and weaker, and, before 
reaching St. Helena, disease had made such inroads 
on her constitution, that she became convinced that 
her end was near, and that the shores of heaven 
would heave in siffht before she could reach her 
native land. And, with her hand fastened on the 
skies, the rolling earth* could present no scene so 
tempting • as to cause her heart and hopes to linger 
below, if it were the will of God that she should 
now ascend. " She had been in the habit," says 
Mr. Judson, " of contemplating death as neither dis- 
tant nor undesirable. As it drew near, she remained 
perfectly tranquil. jSTo shade of doubt, or fear, or 
anxiety, ever passed over her mind. She had a 
prevailing preference to depart and be with Christ, 
f I am longing to depart,' and ' what can I want 
besides ? ' quoting the language of a familiar hymn, 
were the expressions which revealed the spiritual 
peace and joy of her mind ; yet, at times, the 
thought of her native land, to which she was now 



* His hand the good man fastens on the skies, 
And bids earth roll, nor feels her idle whirl. — Young. 



258 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



approaching, after an absence of twenty years, and 
a longing desire to see once more her son George, 
her parents, and the friends of her youth, drew 
down her ascending soul, and constrained her to 
say, ' I am in a strait betwixt two, — let the will of 
God be done.' 

" In regard to her children, she ever manifested 
the most surprising composure and resignation, so 
much so, that I was once induced to say, ' You seem 
to have forgotten the dear little ones we have left 

behind.' ' Can a mother forget ? ' she replied, 

and was unable to proceed. During her last days 
she spent much time in praying for the early con- 
version of her children. May her living and her 
dying prayers draw down the blessing of God on 
their bereaved heads." 

In the latter part of August, a few days before 
her death, Mr. Judson called the children to her 
bedside, and remarked to her, in his humble, self- 
abasing way, that he wished to ask pardon for all his 
unkind words and deeds, saying that he had failed 
to treat her with the kindness and affection which 
she had merited. To this remark, she replied, in 
that grateful and Christ-like spirit, which peculiarly 
marked her character, " O, you will kill me, if you 
talk so. It is I that should ask pardon of you ; and 
I only want to get well that I may have an oppor- 
tunity of making some return for all your kindness, 
and of showing you how much I love you." 

Mr. Judson was now expecting to be under the 
painful necessity of consigning his beloved partner 



OF ABOXIUAM JTJDSOX. 



259 



to the deep; " but it was so ordered in divine Prov- 
idence," lie writes, that when the indications of 
approaching death had become strongly marked, the 
ship came to anchor in the port of St. Helena. For 
three days she continued to sink rapidly, though her 
bodily sufferings were not very severe. Her mind 
became liable to wander; but a single word was 
sufficient to recall and steady her recollections. On 
the evening of the 31st of August, she appeared to 
be drawing near to the end of her pilgrimage. The 
children took leave of her, and retired to rest. I sat 
alone by the side of her bed during the hours of the 
night, endeavoring to administer relief to the dis- 
tressed body, and consolation to the departing soul. 
At two o'clock in the morning, wishing to obtain one 
more token of recognition, I roused her attention, 
and said, ' Do you still love the Saviour? ' 1 O yes,' 
she replied, 'I ever love the Lord Jesus Christ.' I 
said again, ■ Do you still love me \ ' She replied in 
the affirmative, by a peculiar "expression of her own. 
' Then give me one more kiss ; " and we exchanged 
that token of love for the last time. Another hour 
passed, — life continued to recede, — and she ceased to 
breathe. For a moment, I traced her upward flight, 
and thought of the wonders which were opening to 
her view. I then closed her sightless eyes, dressed 
her, for the last time, in the drapery of death ; and, 
being quite exhausted with many sleepless nights, I 
threw myself down and slept. On awaking in the 
morning, I saw the children standing and weeping 



260 



THE MISSIONAKY LABOES 



around the body of their dear mother, then, for the 
first time, inattentive to their cries." 

Her interment took place in the afternoon of the 
day on which she died, and the following exceed- 
ingly interesting account of it, was communicated, 
in the autumn of 1850, to a religious publication 
of Boston, by Rev. J. McGregor Bertram, a Baptist 
clergyman, at St. Helena. We take the liberty 
to slightly abridge the portion of the article trans- 
cribed, and to correct one or two errors, probably 
typographical : 

"Early in the morning of the 1st of September, I 
received a note from Mr. Carrol, the American con- 
sul of that island, informing me that a ship named 
the Sophia Walker, had dropped anchor in our bay, 
the previous night, and that she had on board two 
distinguished passengers, Mr. Judson and lady, with 
their three children; but, sad to state, since that 
brief period, Mrs. Judson had departed this life. 
He further stated, that Mr. Judson sent his christian 
regards to me, requesting that I would come on 
board, as he was very desirous to see me. I had 
heard of Mr. Judson long before, and had learned to 
think of him as one of the most noble heroes of the 
'cross of Christ.' With, a heart full of painful sym- 
pathy,. I hastened to the vessel. As the boat in 
which I was, neared the floating house of death, I 
perceived several of the crew approaching the gang- 
way. Deep sorrow was depicted on their counte- 
nances. The captain received me with a welcome. 



OF ADONIRAM JTDSOX. 



261 



and after a few touching hints, conducted me to the 
cabin, where I was, for the first time, introduced to 
Mr. Judson. He held ont his hand ; but, for a mo- 
ment, his heart was too full for articulation. He 
looked pale and careworn. The bitter tears flowed 
down his cheeks in rapid succession, moistening his 
lips, as if seeking to find their way back again into 
that heart of sorrow, whence they flowed. Such a 
touching scene I never witnessed before. TTith him 
stood his three small children, weeping, and refusing 
to be comforted, because she, whom they so dearly 
loved, was not. Mr. Judson soon regained his self- 
possession. He spoke to his afflicted children in the 
sweetest manner, and in the most consoling language 
a christian father's lips could utter, and then turning 
to me, said, 

"•O sir, she died in the Lord — so peacefully. I 
asked her, but a little before she died, if she loved 
the Saviour, and could trust her soul into his hands. 
She answered, 4 Yes, O yes.' Come, Mr. Bertram, 
will you look at my love ? She is just like herself, 
lovely, even in death.' 

" He led the way into the state-room, where lay 
the cold remains in which once dwelt the soul of 
her who had given and devoted to the Saviour's 
cause, her life, her all. Pleasant she was, indeed, 
even in death. A sweet smile of love seemed to rest 
on her countenance, as if heavenly grace had stamped 
it there. Mr.. Judson stood at her head, and the 
children around her, weeping and sobbing. He 
kissed her cold forehead, -again and again, bedewing 



262 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



it with tears. After a few moments, he said, ' My 
love suffered much, before she died ; but never mur- 
mured. Her sufferings are over. Yes, she is now 
in heaven. I did all for her myself ; dressed, and 
laid her out myself. This was her own request. To 
me it was a painful duty ; but God sustained me.' 

" He then informed me that arrangements had 
been made for the funeral, which was to take place 
at four in the afternoon, and begged I would attend 
and conduct the religious services on board the ves- 
sel. I then left the ship and hastened on shore, to 
summon all my christian brethren to be in waiting 
on the wharf, at half past three o'clock. Returning 
to the vessel, I remained with Mr. Judson until after- 
noon. When the time for the religious service 
arrived, the captain called together all the friends 
who were on board, and all hands who could be 
spared from the ship. I then read a suitable portion 
of the divine word, and gave a brief address, I trust 
from the Lord a word in season, and then we all 
knelt in prayer to the wise Disposer of every event. 
When the service was ended, we again visited the 
solemn state-room, to take a last look of the departed 
wife and missionary. The bereaved husband and 
weeping children fastened their eyes upon the loved 
remains, as if they could have looked forever. 
Weeping, kiss after kiss was imprinted on the cold 
forehead. The last look was taken, the last kiss 
imparted, and then all was hid from mortal vision, 
until the morning of the resurrection. The coffin 
was removed to the boat, which was to convey it on 



OF AD03TRAM JUDSOX. 



263 



shore. Other boats were connected with this, so 
arranged as to form a funeral procession — three 
going ahead, towing the one which contained the 
corpse, and moving forward with the heavy beatings 
of their oars, and another followed, in which were 
Mr. Judson and the three children, with the captain 
of the ship and myself as chief mourners. Our 
christian brethren and sisters were in a goodly num- 
ber, with Mr. Carrol, the American consul, and his 
family and some other of his friends, already waiting 
on the shore, to join the funeral procession. The 
body was then transferred from the boat to the bier, 
which was carried by a number of seamen. The 
pall bearers we selected from among our christian sis- 
ters. They were four in number and chief women, 
viz., Mrs. Captain O'Connor, of the East India Com- 
pany ; Mrs. Janisch, widow of the late Dutch con- 
sul ; Mrs. Torbett, of Xapoleon's tomb ; Mrs. Carrol, 
American consul's lady. Mr. Judson and myself 
walked first, leading one of the children ; the cap- 
tain next came, leading the other two ; the American 
consul followed, with his friends ; then our christian 
brethren and sisters, two and two ; the whole num- 
bering about one hundred persons. It is nearly half 
a mile from the landing to the burying ground, 
the way to which lies through the town. The in- 
habitants paid their respects by closing their shops. 
The street was considerably lined on either side 
with spectators, who all appeared to manifest a 
mournful sympathy with Mr. Judson and the dear 
children. 



264 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



"On arriving at the grave, the Episcopal clergyman 
read the burial service of the Church of England. 
The body was then committed .to its mother dust. 
Our christian brethren stood around the grave and 
sung a solemn hymn, selected for the occasion. 
During this service, as Mr. Judson stood supported 
by my arm, I felt his animal frame frequently ready 
to give way, particularly toward the last, when the 
coffin was about to be lowered into the grave. I 
could see him heaving his heart to God, for power 
from on high, to strengthen him. God heard his 
prayer, and held him up. All being now over, the 
christian friends began to withdraw ; but Mr. J nelson 
and the children appeared to linger, as if reluctant 
to leave the sacred spot. We left the remains of 
Mrs. Judson, in one of the choicest spots of the bur- 
ying ground — a banian tree spreading its branches 
over it, as if to guard,the precious treasure which lay 
interred beneath its shade. 

"We then conducted Mr. Judson and the children 
to the house of Mr. Thomas Alesworth, which stood 
adjacent to the burying ground. His large parlor 
was filled with christian friends. A prayer meeting 
was held. A goodly number engaged, each and all 
praying God for comfort and support to his dear 
servant and his children, in this, their time of need. 
We all took tea together, and spent the remainder of 
the time in religious conversation, speaking much of 
Jesus and the resurrection. And now the time of 
Mr. Judson's departure drew nigh. The captain 
called, informing him that there was little time to 



OF ADONIKAM JT7DSON. 



265 



spare, as the ship was to put out to sea again that 
evening. Mr. Judson then arose and addressed us. 
He spoke with feelings of the highest gratitude of 
the Lord's goodness unto him, in sparing him the 
painful task of burying the remains of his beloved 
wife in the restless deep ; in bringing her to our 
island, and in giving her a christian burial, and sur- 
rounding him with so many kind friends, who had 
joined with him in paying the last tribute of respect to 
her, who to him, had proved one of the best of wives, 
and the most devoted mother. He said he never 
could have thought God had so many who loved him 
on the island, and that he expected, when Mrs. Jud- 
son died, to have buried her with the assistance of a 
few seamen and a small number of sympathizing 
friends. He thanked us all from his very heart, in 
the name of the Lord, for our christian sympathy 
and kindness to him and his children, praying God 
to reward us a thousand fold, to bless us as a chris- 
tian church, and requested that we would follow him 
with our prayers, when on the mighty deep. He 
then gave Mr. Carrol and myself charge of the 
grave, and instructions concerning the headstone. 
He desired me often to give the hallowed spot, where 
lay the remains of his beloved wife, a friendly look, 
instead of himself, who would soon be far away from 
it ; but should continue to visit it in the mournful 
remembrance of his spirit. We accompanied him 
to the ship, sorrowing with double sorrow, that we 
should see his face no more in the flesh. Bidding 
him God speed, we said the last farewell." 
12 



266 



THE MISSIONARY LABOE8 



Mr. Judson's friends at St. Helena united with 
Capt. Codman, commander of the vessel, in defraying 
the expenses of the funeral, and pledged themselves 
to superintend the erection of the grave stones, which 
were soon afterward forwarded. 

Mrs. Judson died in the forty-second year of her 
age, and the twenty-first of her missionary life. F ew 
women live on the field so long, and rarely does one 
accomplish so much. Pier talents were of a superior 
order, and were all given to the service of her Master. 
Though precocious in her mental developments, her 
mind gathered strength as her years advanced and 
her responsibilities increased; and her first great 
sorrow, the loss of her oldest child, in 1829, thor- 
oughly subdued her heart, and gave a more uniform- 
ly heavenward bias to her moral affections ; so that, 
to intellectual brilliancy was now added that sweet 
humility which gives one the dignity, almost, of an 
angel, and is the finishing stroke to human excel- 
lence. When, at the age of thirty-one, she became 
the wife of Mr. J udson, she stood in the front rank of 
living women. Possessing every qualification for a 
missionary, she was a fit companion for him who had 
learned to appreciate the strong powers of mind, the 
majestic sweetness of character, and the matchless, 
self-sacrificing fidelity of her, who, after a life of 
trials heroically borne, and of labors sublimely per- 
formed, went to sleep on the shore of the Indian sea. 

A short time before midnight of the day on which 
Mrs. Judson was buried, the ship weighed anchor, 
spread her sails, and the man of sorrows, once more 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSOX. 



267 



a lone widower, was on his way to the a setting sun," 
On the following morning, he writes, "no vestige of 
the island was discemable in the dim horizon, For 
a few days, in the solitude of my cabin, with my 
poor children crying around me, I could not help 
abandoning myself to heart-breaking sorrow. But 
the promises of the gospel came to my aid, and faith 
stretched her view to the bright world of eternal 
life, and anticipated a happy meeting with those 
beloved beings, whose bodies are mouldering at 
Amherst and St. Helena/' 

After a vovasje of about six weeks from St. Hel- 
ena, Mr. Judson landed in Boston, on the loth of 
October ; and no seiwant of God, it is probable, ever 
set his feet on these shores, whose coming caused so 
many bosoms to heave with high and holy emotions. 
His presence was like the genius of Christianity in- 
carnate, and the tide of veneration and love rose 
like an ocean, heaving its sympathetic waves toward 
him, and experiencing no ebb while he sojourned, all 
too briefly, in the land. The homage that was paid, 
wherever he went, was of that elevated and rational 
character, which springs not from idolatrous admira- 
tion of the man, but from exuberant gratitude to God 
for the wonders He had wrought through the instru- 
mentality of a single missionary. 

In the evening of the third day after his arrival, 
a meeting of the friends of missions was held in the 
Bowdoin Square Baptist church, and the gathering 
on the occasion was immense, and the scene ti dy 
thrilling. True, Bolles, and Baldwin, and Staughl >n 3 



268 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



and some others, with whom Mr. Juclson had corres- 
ponded from the opposite side of the globe, but, 
with whom he could claim no personal acquaint- 
ance, had gone to heaven to welcome him there. 
Yet one venerable man was present to whom he 
had addressed many a communication, and who was 
among the foremost to welcome the pioneer mission- 
ary to the arms of the Baptists, and to pledge him 
their support ; and that one being the President of 
the Board, was designated, with double propriety, 
to introduce the scarred veteran of a jungle warfare 
with darkness, to the thousands who were impatient 
to draw near and gaze upon his face and catch even 
the faintest whisper of his voice. — After appropri- 
ate preliminary services, Rev. Daniel Sharp rose, 
and, in behalf of the friends of christian missions, 
addressed Mr. Judson as follows : 

" There are some feelings which are too sacred 
for public utterance. There are sentiments of re- 
spect and regard, which, when whispered to the ear, 
or spoken in the privacy of confidential intercourse, 
are pleasant and refreshing as the breath of spring, 
but which lose their fragrance in the atmosphere of 
a public assembly. Were I to express my own feel- 
ings toward yourself, my admiration, my confidence, 
my gratitude, my regard, I should say many things 
that in this assembly would seem out of place. I 
may, however, without violating christian propriety, 
speak in behalf of the public, in the presence of the 
public. 



OF ADOXIEAM JTTDSO^. 



269 



u I may say, without the semblance of flattery or 
adulation, the denomination have cherished a deep, 
and affectionate, and grateful interest in your labors ; 
they have wondered at your steady and unfaltering 
perseverance ; they have admired your disinterested 
and self-denying course ; and they have tenderly 
sympathized with you, and prayed for you, when 
they heard of your personal sufferings, your impris- 
onment, and loss of personal liberty ; and when they 
have heard of those greater losses to which, in the 
death of loved and cherished ones, you have been 
subjected. And they have rejoiced with you, not 
indeed that all your work was done, but that a 
glorious work was done, when, in humble prostra- 
tion before the beneficent Author of revelation, you 
devoutly thanked Him that you had completed the 
translation of the holy Scriptures in the Burman lan- 
guage. That was a memorable day, not only in the 
history of your own life, but in the history of missions. 

" 'We can only pray, dear brother, that after a 
still more extended and critical knowledge of the 
Burruan language, the result of patient and labori- 
ous study and research, your life may be prolonged 
to revise and amend your translation of those soul- 
sanctifying and soul-comforting truths, which tell 
with wondrous power in any language in which an 
accurate version of them is given. Your prosecu- 
tion of that other great work, to which your mind, 
and pen, and clays are given — a Burman diction- 
ary — at the completion of which you may well rest 
from your labors, will aid you greatly in giving your 



270 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



last correcting touch to the Bur man Scriptures. Our 
prayer will be, in submission to God's will, that you 
may live until you have sent out to the world the 
volumes, which will not only shed their radiant light 
on the Scriptures, but will quicken and elevate the 
common mind of India. 

" And now, dear brother, withdrawn as you have 
been, by afflictive dispensation of Providence, from 
your chosen and loved labors, allow me to say, in 
behalf of your ministerial brethren and other breth- 
ren and friends — We welcome you to your native 
land ; we welcome you to the scenes of your early 
and manly youth ; we welcome you to om' worship- 
ing assemblies ; we welcome you to our hearts. 
As the representative of the ministers and private 
christians present, I give to you this hand of cordial 
welcome, of sympathy, of approbation, and of love. 
And I believe, could all our denomination be col- 
lected in one vast assembly, they would require and 
empower some one to perform this service for them, 
or rather each one would prefer to give this signifi- 
cant token of love, and respect, and good wishes, for 
himself. ~\V ere it possible, and could your strength 
hold out, and your hand bear the grasp and the cor- 
dial shake of so many, I could wish that every one 
who loves the Bible and missions, might be his own 
representative, and give to you, as I do, the hand of 
an honest, unchanging, and cordial good will." 

The reader will recollect, that when Mr. Judson 
became a Baptist, Rev. Samuel ISTott, who could not 



OF AD0XIEA1T JUDS02T. 



271 



sympathize with him in his change of sentiment, 
paid a beautiful tribute to his sincerity in leaving 
the Congregationalists, and to his piety manifested 
in taking this painful step. The two parted in India, 
more than thirty years before this date. Mr. Xott 
toiled a few years as a missionary at Bombay, and 
was then obliged, on account of ill health, to return 
home. He was holding the pastoral office over the 
Congregational church in TTarehara, Massachusetts, 
when Mr. J udson returned ; and hearing of his arri- 
val, hastened to Boston, reaching the city just in 
season to be present at this meeting. After Dr. 
Sharp had concluded his address, while a hymn was 
being sung, and before Mr. Judson had left the pul- 
pit, Mr. Xott hurried up the aisle, made himself 
known to Mr. Judson, and the two embraced with a 
fervor of feeling rarely witnessed on the meeting 
of christian friends. But, with all their joys, how 
faintly such greetings typify the meetings of the 
ransomed and the recognizing, in the upper world ! 

After the dismissal of the meeting, many in the 
assembly crowded up the aisle, and pressed the hand 
of him fur whose success they had often prayed, and 
toward whose support most of them had, doubtless, 
nobly contributed. 

" Welcome to thee ! long lapse of time 

Hath come, and glanced, and gone between, 
Since thon for yonder idol clime 

A wanderer from our coasts wast seen 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



On these, thy native shores, to men 
Who bask in beams of living light, 

Thou 'It tell of those beyond its ken — 
Of Burmah 's millions wrapt in night. 

"Welcome to thee ! thou wilt not leave 
The god-like embassy undone ; 

There yet are fadeless wreaths to weave, 
And lofty conquests to be won." 



CHAPTER XXI. 



Mr. Judson at the Meeting of the Convention in 1S45 — Dr. Way land's Address 
to him — Interesting Scene in the Convention — Mr. Judson'3 Reception at 
Richmond — Address of Rev. J. B. Jeter — Mr. Judson's Private Character — 
He marries Miss Chubbuck — Farewell Services in Boston — Mr. Judson's 
Address. 

A special meeting of the Convention was held in 
Xovember, 1S45, in the Baptist Tabernacle, New 
York. Mr. Jnclson was present,* and the following 
resolutions, offered by Rev. Spencer H. Cone, were 
adopted with the utmost cordiality and unanimity : 

" Resolved, That this convention regard, as a spe- 
cial occasion of gratitude to the God of all grace, that 
he has so long preserved the life of our senior mission- 
ary, Rev. Adoniram Judson, and has strengthened 
him to perform services of inestimable value for the 
perishing heathen. 

" Resolved, That the President be requested to 
express to our brother Judson assurances of the 

* Messrs. Kincaid and Abbott were also in this country, and par- 
ticipated in the discussions in this meeting of the Convention. 
12* 



274 THE MISSIONARY LABOE9 

pleasure with which we welcome him to his native 
land, and our heartfelt sympathy with him in the 
painful circumstances which have withdrawn him, 
as we hope only for a season, from the field of his 
missionary labors." 

After their adoption, Dr. Cone took Mr. Judson by 
the hand, and introduced him to the President, Dr. 
Wayland, in these words: "I present you ' Jesus 
Christ 's man.' 1 " The President then addressed Mr. 
Judson as follows : 

"It is with no ordinary feelings, my beloved 
brother, that I rise to discharge the duty imposed 
upon me, by the resolution which you have this 
moment heard. My own heart assures me that lan- 
guage is inadequate to express the sentiments of your 
brethren on the present occasion. 

"Thirty-three years since, you, and a few other 
servants of the Most High God, relying simply upon 
his promises, left your native land, to carry the mes- 
sage of Christ to the heathen. You were the first 
offering of the American churches to the Gentiles. 
You went forth amid the sneers of the thoughtless, 
and with only the cold and reluctant consent of your 
brethren. The general voice declared your under- 
taking to be fanatical, and those who cowered under 
its rebuke, drew back from you in alarm. On 
the voyage, your views respecting christian ordi- 
nances became changed, and this change gave rise 
to the formation of the convention now in session 
before you. 



OF ADOXTEAM JTDSON. 



275 



a When at length you arrived in India, more for- 
midable obstacles than those arising from paganism, 
were thrown in your path. The mightiest empire 
that the world has ever seen, forbade every attempt 
to preach Christ to the countless millions subjected 
to her sway, and ordered you peremptorily from her 
shores. Escaping from her power, you took refuge 
in the Isle of France, and at last, after many perils, 
arrived at Rangoon, where, out of the reach of chris- 
tian power, you were permitted to enter upon your 
labors of love. 

*• After years of toil, you were able to preach 
Christ to the Burmans, and men began to inquire 
after the eternal God. The intolerance of the gov- 
ernment then became apparent, and you proceeded 
to Ava, to plead the cause of toleration before the 
emperor. Your second attempt was successful, and 
permission was granted to preach the gospel in the 
capital itself. But how inscrutable are the ways of 
Providence. Your labors had but just commenced, 
when a British army took possession of Rangoon, and 
you and your fellow-laborer, the late Dr. Price, were 
cart into a loathsome dungeon and loaded with 
chains. For nearly two years, you suffered all that 
barbarian cruelty could inflict, and to the special 
interposition of God alone, it is to be ascribed, that 
your impriso nment was not terminated by a violent 
death. On you, more than any other missionary of 
modern times, has been conferred the distinction of 
suffering for Christ. Your limbs have been galkd 
with fetters, and you have tracked with bleeding feet 



276 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



the burning sands between Ava and Amarapura. 
"With the apostle of the Gentiles yon may say, 
1 Henceforth let no man trouble me — I bear in my 
body the marks of the Lord Jesus.' Yet even here 
God did not leave you comfortless. He had pro- 
vided an angel to minister to your wants, and when 
her errand was accomplished, took her to himself, 
and the Hopia tree marks the spot whence her spirit 
ascended. From prison and from chains, God in his 
own time delivered you, and made your assistance of 
special importance in negotiating a treaty of peace 
between those two nations, one of whom had driven 
you from her shores, and the other had inflicted upon 
you every cruelty but death. 

" Since this period, the prime of your life has been 
spent in laboring to bless the people who had so bar- 
barously persecuted you. Almost all the christian 
literature in their language has proceeded from your 
pen ; your own hand has given to a nation the ora- 
cles of God, and opened to the millions now living, 
and to those who shall come after them to the end of 
time, the door of everlasting life. That mysterious 
Providence which shut you out from Burmah Pro- 
per, has introduced you to the Karens, a people who 
seem to have preserved, from remote antiquity, the 
knowledge -of the true God, and who were waiting 
to receive the message of his Son. To them you, 
and those who have followed in your footsteps, have 
made known the Saviour of the world, and they, 
by thousands, have flocked to the standard of the 
cross. 



OF ADQHIRAM JTDS0X. 



277 



' ; After years of unremitted toil, the Providence of 
God has brought you to be present with ns at this 
important crisis. TTe sympathize with yon in all 
the sorrows of your painful voyage. May God sus- 
tain you in your sore bereavement, and cause even 
this mysterious dispensation to work out for you a 
far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. 

a How changed is the moral aspect of the world 
since you first entered upon your labors. Then, no 
pagan nation had heard the name of Clrrist from 
American lips ; at present, churches of Christ planted 
by American benevolence, are springing up in almost 
every heathen nation. The shores of the Mediter- 
ranean, the islands of the sea, the thronged cities, 
and the wild jungles of India, are resounding with 
the high praises of God, in strains first taught by 
American missionaries. The nation that drove you 
from her shores, has learned to foster the messenger 
of the cross with parental solicitude. You return to 
your native land, whence you were sufiered to de- 
part almost without her blessing, and you find that 
the missionary enterprise has kindled a flame that 
can never be quenched in the heart of the universal 
church, and that every christian and even' philanthro- 
pist comes forward to tender to you the homage due 
to the man through whose sufiering-. labors, and ex- 
ample the~e changes have, to so great a degree, been 
effected. In behalf of our brethren, in behalf of the 
whole church of Christ, we welcome you back to the 
land of your fathers. God graut that your life may 
long be preserved, and that what you have seen may 



278 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



prove to be but the beginning of blessing to our 
churches at home, and to the heathen abroad." 

Mr. Judson had been forbidden by his medical 
advisers, to speak in public, and, in reply to Dr. 
Wayland, merely expressed his thanks for the uni-. 
form and marked expressions of respect and kindness 
with which he had been received since his arrival 
in his native land, and. hoped that these things would 
tend to humble him and make him more assiduous 
in the discharge of his duties to the benighted. 

On the twenty-first, the third day of the Conven- 
tion, a report was presented, suggesting that possibly 
Arracan would have to be abandoned, when Mr. 
Judson rose, and, in a voice audible in all parts of 
the house, said, in substance : " Though forbidden by 
physicians to speak, I must say a few words. I 
must protest against the abandonment of the Arra- 
can mission." He then presented his reasons for the 
mission's continuance ; but in so low a voice, that Dr. 
Cone was obliged to repeat his words to the assem- 
bly. He concluded by saying, " If the Convention 
think my services can be disjDensed with, in finishing 
the dictionary, I will go immediately to Arracan ; or, 
if God should spare my life to finish my dictionary, 
I will go there afterward, and labor there, and die 
there, and he "buried there / " 

The thrilling remarks of Mr. Judson, together 
with others in a similar spirit made by Messrs. Ab- 
bott, Kincaid, and two or three other gentlemen, 
drew out the following resolution, which was offered 



OF AD02HRAM JUDSON. 



279 



by Rev. William R. Williams, and unanimously 
adopted : 

" Resolved, That, in the indications of divine Prov- 
idence, as presented by the remarkable harmony and 
the reviving hopes of the brethren here met, and the 
flowing together of all hearts in the baptism of one 
spirit, this Convention find themselves compelled to 
abandon, for the present at least, all thought of aban- 
doning or abridging their missionary stations ; and 
that our Heavenly Father is summoning us to rein- 
force, and even to enlarge our operations, in fuller 
accordance with the greatness of his promises and 
of the world's necessities." 

Receptions similar to those in Boston and New 
York, were given Mr. Juclson in Philadelphia, Bal- 
timore, Washington, Richmond, and several other 
places ; but the plan of this w T ork would not admit 
of their details. The one at the last mentioned 
place, however, was of so important a character, and 
the sentiment of so many minds was expressed, that 
we can not pass over it. The gathering at Rich- 
mond, February 8th, 1846, was a mass missionary 
meeting of members of "The Southern Missionary 
Convention," wdiich came into existence in 1845, 
and owed its origin to a disagreement of sentiment 
between Baptists of the North and South, on the 
question of slavery. The Acting Board, after some 
correspondence with the Alabama State Convention, 
and in reply to a question of that body, declared 



280 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



that "if any one should offer himself as a mission- 
ary, having slaves, and should insist on retaining 
them as his property, they could not appoint him." 
This declaration caused the separate organization at 
the South, and that step occasioned the special meet- 
ing at the Baptist Tabernacle, and the change of the 
name of the General Convention to that of the 
"American Baptist Missionary Union." Each organ- 
ization, it is proper to add, has since been engaged 
in prosecuting the work of missions in its chosen 
field, in the most peaceful manner, so far as home 
relations are concerned, and with gratifying success. 

Kev. J. B. Jeter, being president of the Southern 
Board, welcomed Mr. Judson as follows : 

"Mr. Judson — I address you on behalf of the For- 
eign Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Conven- 
tion in Richmond, and, I may add, of the whole 
Baptist denomination in the South. The service is 
at once pleasing and painful ; pleasing, because we 
had scarcely expected to enjoy the privilege of see- 
ing your face and grasping your hand — painful, 
because your want of voice prevents you from 
imparting to us the instruction and encouragement 
which you are well qualified to communicate ; and 
the brevity of your visit will make the. pain of sep- 
aration almost equal to the pleasure of meeting. 

" I seize the present opportunity to present a few 
remarks ; and I do it the more readily, as the state 
of your health does not permit us to expect many 
from yourself. 



OF ADOXIEJOI JFDSOX. 



2S1 



" It is interesting to stand at the head-spring of a 
great river, which, traversing a continent, spreads 
through kingdoms fertility, and all the blessings of 
commerce. The position awakens emotions of sub- 
limity. It can not be less interesting and inspiring 
to contemplate events which, in themselves seeming- 
ly iminrportant, have produced momentous results. 
To such an event, our attention is drawn by your 
presence. 

' ; "When you and your honored associates, Xotr, 
Mills, and Xewell, presented to the General Asso- 
ciation of Congregationalists in Massachusetts, as- 
sembled at Bradford in 1S10, a paper expressing 
your desire to engage in the work of foreign mis- 
sions, and asking their advice and aid, who could 
have anticipated the result of the application ? At 
that time the churches were slumbering profoundly 
on the subject of missions ; there were no mission- 
ary societies, no plans matured for conducting mis- 
sions, and no funds collected for the support of 
missionaries. 

'*The application originated the American Board 
of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. A noble in- 
stitution it is — superior to any in our own land, and 
win a in the wisdom of its measures and the success 
of its efforts, with the best-ordered and most re- 
nowned missionary organizations of the old world. 
Its annual expenditure is not far, if at all, short of 
one-third of a million of dollars ; and its mission 
stations have dotted almost the whole extent of 
heathendom. 



282 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" Under the patronage of this Board, after consid- 
erable hesitation and delay on their part, you em- 
barked, with your companion, and revered associates, 
in 1812, for the East. On your arrival there, an 
event occurred deeply affecting your own course, and 
the cause of missions. You, Mrs. Judson, and the 
lamented Rice, became Baptists. Whatever may be 
said or thought of the change, your sincerity in mak- 
ing it cannot be reasonably called in question. You 
abandoned a christian denomination, wealthy — with 
whose members you were intimately acquainted — to 
whom you were tenderly attached, and from whom 
you expected a liberal support, and connected your- 
self with one comparatively poor — • to whose mem- 
bers you were a stranger, and from whom you had 
no prospect of receiving assistance. The hand of 
God was in it. The change was the means of arous- 
ing, among the Baptists of the United States, the 
missionary spirit, and forming the Baptist Triennial 
Convention, under whose patronage you have so long 
labored. 

" By a remarkable train of events, among which 
was the breaking out of the war between this country 
and Great Britain — you. were led, or rather driven 
into Burmah. God had selected that field for you, 
and designed that you* should accomplish a great 
work there. 

I pass over the story of your toils and sufferings, 
your chains and imprisonment, and the almost super- 
human fortitude of your now sainted companion. It 
is familiar to every American, and, indeed, every 



OF ADOXIRAM JUDSOX. 



2S3 



christian reader. It forms an essential and thrilling 
chapter in the history of missions. 

"And now, iny brother, to say nothing of what has 
been effected by the missionaries of the Baptist Tri- 
ennial Convention, anions the aborigines of Amer- 
ica, in France, in Germany, in Denmark, in Greece, 
in Africa, in China, in Siam, in Hindostan, in Assam, 
behold, what a change God hath wrought in Bur- 
mah, and in the contiguous provinces ! The Bible 
has been translated in the Burman language, care- 
fully revised, printed, put into circulation, and read 
by thousands ! TTe watched with intense interest the 
progress of the translation. \Ye prayed that your life 
might be spared to complete it \Ye saw you when, 
having finished the last leaf of the precious volume, 
you took it in your hand, and bowing beside your 
desk, gave thanks to God that he had enabled you to 
accomplish the work. To that thanksgiving we sub- 
joined our hearty amen ! In that land, so recently 
enveloped in the darkness of heathenism, churches 
have been founded, to worship the name, and keep 
the ordinances of Jesus. Native preachers have 
been raised up to proclaim in their own tongue, and 
among their own countrymen, 4 the unsearchable 
riches of Christ.' The Karens, a simple-hearted and 
singular people, are turning by hundreds and thou- 
sands to the Lord. Among them, the gospel has had 
a success rarely equaled since the days of the apos- 
tles. On Burmah, c the morning light is breaking.' 
The time to favor her has fully come. 

44 AVe cannot penetrate futurity. I pretend not to 



284 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



be skilled in prophetic interpretation. But in the 
next half century, we may anticipate great accessions 
to Christianity. "We found our hope on past success. 
"Wherever the gospel has been preached, plainly and 
faithfully, from the equator to the poles, among civil- 
ized or savage men, it has been the " power of God 
unto salvation." The success of the missionary en- 
terprise, has everywhere corresponded, in a remark- 
able manner, with the measures of ability, zeal, and 
diligence employed in its prosecution. We base our 
expectation on the increasing prevalence of the mis- 
sionary spirit. When, more than half a .century 
ago, the work of foreign missions commenced among 
the Anglo-Saxon christians, led on by the immortal 
Carey, it was predicted that its advocates would soon 
grow weary, and relax their efforts. The prediction 
has not been fulfilled. At no previous period has it 
been so much the settled policy and purpose of the 
churches, to make efforts and sacrifices in the work, 
of evangelizing the world, as it is now. And, above 
all, we found our hope on the divine promises. Un- 
less we have misconceived their import, they point 
to a time of greater light, purity, and triumph in the 
church, than the world has yet seen. This sin-dark- 
ened earth is to be filled with the knowledge of the 
glory of, God. From the rising of the sun, even 
unto the going down of the same, the name of Christ 
shall be great among the Gentiles, and in every place 
incense shall be offered unto His name, and a pure 
offering, 

" Henceforth, my brother, you and we shall labor 



OF ADONIRAM JTD50X. 



235 



ill connection with different Boards. Events which 
neither you nor we could control, produced the sepa- 
ration ; and God, we trust, will overrule it for good. 
One thing is certain: the southern Baptists have no 
thought of abandoning the missionary field. We 
are buckling on our armor, and marshaling our hosts 
for a fiercer onset on the powers of darkness than we 
have yet made. We have selected China as our 
battle-field — a vast, interesting, and inviting field it 
is. It contains one-half, if not two-thirds of the 
heathen population of the globe. The wall, which, 
for centimes, presented an insuperable barrier to 
the introduction of Christianity, has recently been 
leveled with the dust, and the banner of the cross 
now floats in triumph in Canton. 

u But I must close my remarks. Brother Judson, 
we are acquainted with your history. TTe have 
marked your labors — have sympathized in your 
various sufferings — have shed manv a tear at the 
foot of the ' Hopia-tree," — have gone, in fancy, on 
mournful pilgrimage to the • rocky island of St. Hel- 
ena — have rejoiced in your successes, and the suc- 
cesses of your devoted associates — and have long 
and fervently wished to see your face in the flesh. 
This privilege we now enjoy. Welcome, thrice 
welcome, are you, my brother, to our city — our 
churches — our bosoms. I speak as the representa- 
tive of southern Baptists. We love you for the 
truth's sake, and for your labors in the cause of 
Christ. We honor you as the father of American 
missions. 



286 



THE MISSIONARY LABOES 



" One thought pains us. To-morrow morning you 
leave us. We shall see your face no more. You 
will soon return to Burmah, the land of your adop- 
tion. There you will continue your toils, and there, 
probably, be buried. But this separation is not 
without its solace. Thank God ! it is as near from 
Burmah to heaven, as from Richmond, or any other 
j3oint on the globe. Augels, oft commissioned to 
convey to heaven the departing spirits of pious Bur- 
mans and Karens, have learned the way to that dark . 
land. When dismissed from your toils and suffer- 
ings, they will be in readiness to perform the same 
service for you. God grant that we may all meet 
in that bright world. There sin shall no more an- 
noy us, separations no more pain us, and every 
power find full and sweet employ in the service of 
Christ! 

"And now, my brother, I give my hand in token 
of affection to you, and of your cordial reception 
among us." 

The visit of Mr. Judson to this country brought 
him in contact with his warmest friends, and re- 
vealed to them beautiful traits of his character, for 
which they would, otherwise, probably never have 
given him full credit. He had heretofore been seen 
at a distance, and only in his public capacity ; now 
he was viewed with all the microscopic advantages 
of domestic intercourse ; and the graces of child- 
like simplicity, confidence, sympathy, and affection, 
bound him still closer to the hearts of those who had 



OF ADOXLRAM JUDSON. 



287 



long been accustomed to contemplate and admire the 
mountain majesty and sternness of his missionary 
life. 64 His heart," writes Dr. Hague, whose inter- 
course with him was intimate, " was a well-spring of 
tender affections, his eye took within its scope the 
whole wide range of human relationships, and he 
was sensitively alive to the happiness of all around 
him. In this respect, he resembled his divine 
Master, who, while on earth, although he was em- 
ployed in a mission that involved the eternal destinies 
of a fallen race, could find congenial joys in the 
friendship of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, and who, 
amidst the agonies of the cross, could commend the 
temporal welfare of his mother to 'that disciple 
whom he loved.' 

u The soul," the same writer adds, " reveals itself 
not only in words, but in the tones of the voice, in 
the animated countenance, in the kindling eye, in 
every feature, in every movement. Although it 
may not be safe to judge of men by the outward 
appearance merely, yet there are signs of character 
which are seldom mistaken, which no art can coun- 
terfeit, and which make impressions that we can 
neither resist nor erase. And no one, probably, has 
been permitted to enjoy Mr. Judson's society, and 
especially to kneel with him while conducting the 
worship of a family, who has not left his presence 
with some new conviction of the depth of his piety, 
of the breadth of his philanthropy, of his child-like 
humility as a christian, and of his real greatness as 
a man." 



288 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



While ill this country, Mr. Judson was desirous 
of securing the services of some one to write the 
memoirs of his second wife, and was directed to 
Miss Emily Chubbuck, of Utica, ~New York. She 
had written three or four valuable Sabbath-school 
books, and gained a high reputation in the field of 
periodical literature. The acquaintance which Mr. 
Judson formed with her, resulted in their union, 
which took place on the 2d of June, 1846. 

On the last day of the same month, the farewell 
services, preparatory to their departure for Burmah, 
were performed in the Baldwin Place Baptist church, 
of Boston. The exercises preliminary to Mr. Judson's 
address were conducted by Rev. Messrs. R. H. ISTeale, 
H. J. Ripley, and Baron Stow. After the last men- 
tioned gentleman had delivered an eloquent address 
to the Judsons, and other missionaries, who were to 
accompany them, Mr. Judson spoke as follows : 

" My friends are aware, that it is quite impossible 
for me, without serious injury to myself, to sustain 
my voice at such a height as to reach this large 
assembly, except for a few sentences. I have there- 
fore taken the liberty of putting some thoughts on 
paper, which Rev. Mr. Hague will do me the honor 
of reading to you. 

" I wish, however, in my own voice, to praise God 
for the deep interest, in the cause of missions, man- 
ifested by the friends of the Redeemer in this city 
and the vicinity, and to thank them for all their 
expressions and acts of kindness toward me, during 



OF ADOXTKAM JUDSON. 



289 



nxy brief sojourn among them. I regret that cir- 
cumstances have prevented my spending more time 
in this city, and of forming a more intimate ac- 
quaintance with those, whom a slight acquaintance 
has taught me so much to love. 

" It is as certain as any future event can be, that 
I shall never again revisit the shores of my native 
land; that, after a few days, your beautiful city, 
this great and glorious country, will be forever shut 
from my view, iso more shall I enter your places 
of worship ; no more shall I behold your faces, and 
exchange the affectionate salutations of christian love. 

u The greatest favor we can bestow on our absent 
friends, is to bear them on our hearts at the throne 
of grace. I pray you, dear friends, remember me 
there, — and my missionary associates, and our in- 
fant churches, and the poor heathen among whom 
we go to live. And though we do meet no more on 
earth, I trust that our next meeting will be in that 
blessed world, where 4 the loved and the parted here 
below, meet ne'er to part again.' " 

These words, which were uttered with deep emo- 
tion, were distinctly heard by all the assembly. The 
modestly termed " thoughts," to which he referred, 
and which were read by the gentleman designated, 
are as follows : 

" There are periods in the lives of men, who expe- 
rience much change of scene and variety of adven- 
ture, when they seem to themselves to be subject to 
13 



290 



THE MISSIONAEY LABOBS 



some supernatural illusion, or wild, magical dream ; 
when they are ready, amid the whirl of conflicting 
recollections, to doubt their own personal identity, — 
and, like steersmen in a storm, feel that they must 
keep a steady eye to the compass, and a strong 
arm at the wheel. The scene spread out before 
me, seems, on retrospection, to be identified with 
the past, and, at the same time, to be reaching 
forward and foreshadowing the future. At one mo- 
ment, the lapse of thirty-four years is annihilated ; 
the scenes of 1812 are again present; and this as- 
sembly — how like that which commended me to 
God, on first leaving my native shores for the dis- 
tant East. But, as I look around, where are the 
well-known faces of Spring, and Worcester, and 
D wight? Where are Lyman, and Huntington, and 
Griffin ? And where are those leaders of the bap- 
tized ranks, who stretched out their arms across 
the water, and received me into their communion ? 
Where are Baldwin and Bolles? where Holcombe, 
and Rogers, and Staughton? I see them not. I have 
been to their temples of worship, but their voices 
hare passed away. And where are my early mis- 
sionary associates — Newell, and Hall, and Rice, and 
Richards, and Mills ? But why inquire for those so 
ancient? Where are the succeeding laborers in the 
missionary field for many years ; and the intervening 
generation, who sustained the missions ? And where 
are those who moved amid the dark scenes of Ran- 
goon, and Ava, and Tavoy? Where those gentle, 
yet firm spirits, which tenanted forms, — delicate in 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON, 



291 



structure, but careless of the storm — now broken, 
and scattered, and strewn, like the leaves of au- 
tumn, under the shadow of overhanging trees, and 
on remote islands of the sea. 

"No; these are not the scenes of 1812, nor is 
this the assembly that convened in the Tabernacle 
of a neighboring city. Many years have elapsed; 
many venerated, many beloved ones have passed 
away to be seen no more. ' They rest from their 
labors, and their works do follow them. 5 And with 
what words shall I address those who have taken 
their places, the successors of the venerated and the 
beloved — the generation of 1812? 

" In that year, American christians pledged them- 
selves to the work of evangelizing the world. They 
had but little to rest on except the command and 
promise of God. The attempts then made by Brit- 
ish christians had not been attended with so much 
success, as to establish the practicability, or vindi- 
cate the wisdom of the missionary enterprise. For 
many years, the work advanced but slowly. One 
denomination after another embarked in the under- 
taking ; and now American missionaries are seen 
in almost every land and every clime. Many lan- 
guages have been acquired; many translations of 
the Bible have been made ; the gospel has been ex- 
tensively preached; and churches have been estab- 
lished containing thousands of sincere, intelligent 
converts. The obligation, therefore, on the present 
generation, to redeem the pledge given by their 
fathers is greatly enhanced. And it is an animating 



292 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



consideration, that with the enhancement of the 
obligation, the encouragement to persevere in the 
work, and to make still greater efforts, are increas- 
ing from year to year. Judging from the past, what 
may we rationally expect, during the lapse of an- 
other thirty or forty years ? Look forward with the 
eye of faith. See the missionary spirit universally 
diffused, and in active operation throughout this 
country, — every church sustaining, not only its own 
minister, but, through some general organization, its 
own missionary in a foreign land. See the Bible 
faithfully translated into all languages, — the rays of 
the lamp of heaven transmitted through every me- 
dium, and illuminating all lands. See the Sabbath 
spreading its holy calm over the face of the earth, — 
the churches of Zion assembling, and the praises of 
Jesus resounding from shore to shore ; and, though 
the great majority may still remain, as now in this 
christian country, without hope and without God in 
this world, yet the barriers in the way of the descent 
and operation of the Holy Spirit removed, so that 
revivals of religion become more constant and more 
powerful. 

" The world is yet in its infancy ; the gracious 
designs of God are yet hardly developed. Glorious 
things are spoken of Zion, the city of our God. She 
is yet to triumph, and become the joy and glory of 
the whole earth. Blessed be God, that we live in 
these latter times — the latter times of the reign of 
darkness and imposture. Great is our privilege, pre- 
cious our opportunity, to cooperate with the Saviour 



OF ADONTRAM JUDSON. 



293 



in the blessed work of enlarging and establishing 
his kingdom throughout the world. Most precious 
the opportunity of becoming wise, in turning many to 
righteousness, and of shining, at last, as the bright- 
ness of the firmament, and as the stars, forever and 
ever. 

" Let us not, then, regret the loss of those who 
have gone before us, and are waiting to welcome us 
home, nor shrink from the summons that must call 
us thither. Let us only resolve to follow them who 
through faith and patience inherit the promises. 
Let us so employ the remnant of life, and so pass 
away, as that our successors will say of us, as we 
of our predecessors, * Blessed are the dead that die 
in the Lord. They rest from their labors, and their 
works do follow them.' " 



CHAPTEK XXII. 



Mr. and Mrs. Judson embark for Burmah — Messrs. Beeclier and Harris, and 
Miss Lillybridge accompany them — Changes at Maulmain — Growth of the 
Churches there — Mr. and Mrs. Judson repair to Rangoon — State of Civil and 
Religious Matters in Burmah Proper — Return to Maulmain — Arrival of Mr. 
and Mrs. Moore — Newton and Maulmain Stations. 

The time had now arrived for Mr. Judson's de- 
parture. He had visited his natal home, and expe- 
rienced the resurrection of buried memories ; he had 
stood and wept within the old Tabernacle, at Salem, 
where, thirty-four years before, he had been ordained 
to a work which has no rival in moral grandeur, and 
in which God had, through him, honored the chris- 
tian name; and he had traversed his native land, 
and been received, in many places, with an enthusi- 
asm truly inspiring, and far more noble than that 
ever excited by the return of any victorious warrior 
that ever rallied his hosts around the eagles of Eome : 
but nothing could tempt him to tarry on these shores. 
The faintest whisper of duty was sweeter than the 
thunders of human applause, — and, heard over all, 
beckoned him away. 

On the 11th of July, 1846, he who went down to 
the Caravan, in 1812, silently and almost alone, 



AD OX IE AM JUDSON. 



295 



keeping time to the solemn beat of his own un- 
cheered heart, was accompanied to the ship Fan- 
ueil Hall, which lay at anchor in the harbor of 
Boston, by a band of sympathizing friends, and was 
greeted at the dock by hundreds, some of whom had 
stood there for hours, in the burning sun, to catch 
another and the last look of the eloquent apostle, 
whose inspired rhetoric, winging the arrows of truth, 
and. resounding through the jungle, had, by the help 
of the Spirit, lain many a champion of Gaudama pros- 
trate at the feet of Jesus. A prayer is offered ; a hymn 
is sung ; the ship weighs anchor, and a fresh breeze, 
the favoring breath of heaven, bears the venerated sol- 
dier of the cross from the sight of his weeping friends. 

In company with Mr. and Mrs. Judson, were Eev. 
Messrs. John S. Beecher and Xorman Harris, their 
wives, and Miss Lydia Lillybridge, they having been 
previously set apart to the work of missions. Mr. 
and Mrs. Beecher were bound to Arracan; the rest 
to Manlmain. Miss Lillybridge was to labor with 
Mr. and Mrs. Judson in the Burinan department ; 
Mr. and Mrs. Harris in the Karen. They all arrived 
at Maulmain on the 5th of December. 

During Mr. Judson's absence an infant son had 
died, and some other changes had taken place. 
Mr. and Mrs. Osgood had withdrawn from the 
mi -ion on account of ill health;- Mr. Simons 

* The latter, who was the second wife of Mr. Osgood, died at Wy- 
oming New York, July 13th, 1849. When married to Mr. Osgood, 
she was the widow of Rev. Jacob Thomas, who was killed by tho 
fall of a tree, on his way up the Brahmaputra, to Assam. 



296 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



had temporarily left, on a visit to this country ; and 
Mr. Stilson had removed to Maulmain from Akyab 
to take Mr. Osgood's place as. mission treasurer. 
The last gentleman was assisting Mr. Stevens in the 
Burman theological school, and also in the pastoral 
care of the Burman church, which had devolved on 
Mr. Stevens, in the absence of Mr. Judson. Mr. Ean- 
ney was there, acting as depositary, as well as printer. 

The churches connected with the Maulmain mis- 
sion — twenty-six in number, including those of 
Rangoon and Bassein — had been, as a whole, highly 
favored during Mr. Judson's absence. The thirty- 
third annual report of the Missionary Union, being 
for May, 184:7, records fourteen hundred baptisms as 
the fruit of the previous year's efforts.* The num- 
ber of communicants in these churches had swelled 
to four thousand and eight hundred, and embraced 
about half of the whole number, connected with the 
one hundred and eight or ten churches belonging to 
the sixteen missions then supported by the Union. 

"While Mr. Judson was in this country, the am- 
bitious and sanguinary emperor, Tharawaddy, who 
had usurped the throne nine or ten years before, 
was driven therefrom by his own ministers ; and Mr. 
Judson repaired to Rangoon shortly after reaching 
Maulmain, in order to ascertain the feelings of the 
new government toward the christian religion. He 
discovered that the king was far from being indifferent 

* Most of these were Karens. During the last half of the year 1846, 
something like one thousand were added to the Karen churches, in the 
Rangoon region. 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSOft". 



297 



to the influence of foreigners; but, thinking that 
possibly a footing might once more be obtained in 
the empire, he returned to Maulmain for Mrs. Jud- 
son, whom he removed to his original home in the 
empire, in February. 

Rangoon was now the only city in Burmah 
Proper, in which^ foreigners were permitted to re- 
side; and the state of things there, religious and 
political, is presented in the following communica- 
tion, dated March 28, 1847: 

" I have just returned from baptizing a Burrhan 
convert, in the same tank of water where I baptized 
the first Burman convert, Moung Nau, twenty-eight 
years ago. It is now twenty-five years since I ad- 
ministered .baptism in Rangoon, the few converts 
that have been made during that period being gen- 
erally baptized by the native pastor. My time has 
been mostly spent in Maulmain, where, having been 
instrumental, with others, of raising up a few Bur- 
mese and Karen churches, I have left them, since 
my return from America, in the care of my dear and 
excellent missionary brethren, and am now making a 
small attempt once more in Burmah Proper. 

"The attempt, however, is made under very dis- 
couraging circumstances. The present administra- 
tion of government, though rather more friendly to 
foreigners, is more rigidly intolerant than that of the 
late king Tharawaddy. Any known attempt at 
proselyting would be instantly amenable at the 

criminal tribunal, and would probably be punished 
13* 



298 



THE MISSIONARY LAEOES 



by the imprisonment or death of the proselyte, and 
the banishment of the missionary. The governor of 
this place has received me favorably, not as a mis- 
sionary, (though he well knows, from old acquaint- 
ance, that that is my character,) but as a minister of 
a foreign religion, ministering to foreigners resident 
in the place, and a dictionary maker, ' laboring to 
promote the welfare of both countries.' Our mis- 
sionary efforts, therefore, being conducted in private, 
must necessarily be very limited. It is, however, a 
precious privilege to be allowed to welcome into a 
private room a small company, perhaps two or three 
individuals only, and pour the light of truth into 
their immortal souls — souls, that, but for the effi- 
cacy of that light, would be covered with the gloom 
of darkness — darkness to be felt to all eternity. 

"Another discouraging circumstance is the very- 
low state of the Eurman church in this place. There 
are about twenty nominal members still surviving ; 
but they are much scattered, and not half of them 
appear to be living members, I have, therefore, 
been making an attempt to reorganize the church, 
and have found four individuals who have united 
with myself and wife in renewing our church cove- 
nant, and establishing a new church. We have, this 
day, received one new member, and we hope to find 
a few more of the old members, who will come up 
to our standard. 5 ' 

Further extracts from his communications while 
at Rangoon, will show the disposition of "the 



OF ADONIEAM JTTDSON. 



299 



heathen " to " rage," and the infeasibility of effecting, 
just then, the reestablishment of the missions at 
Rangoon and Ava*. 

"Mar 20, 1S±7.— This is the first Lord's day on 
which I have had no regular worship. A private 
order of government was issued day before yester- 
day, to have the house I occupy watched by police 
officers, in order to apprehend any who might bo 
liable to the charge of favoring "Jesus Christ's re- 
ligion." Seasonable information was communicated 
to me and the . disciples, by friends at court, so that 
they have all escaped for the present. None came 
Hear me, except two from the country; and with 
them, I had a very interesting and affecting time, 
in a private room ; and they got off undiscovered. 
Four Karen lads, who had been waiting for a pas- 
sage to Maulmain, decamped before light this morn- 
ing, for their native jungle. 

u The vice-governor of the place, who, indeed, is 
the acting governor at present, is the most ferocious, 
blood-thirsty monster, I have ever known in Bur- 
mah. It is said that his house and court-yard re- 
sound, day and night, with the screams of people 
under torture. Even foreigners are not beyond his 
grasp. He lately wreaked his rage on some Arme- 
nians and Mussulmen ; and one of the latter class 
died in the hands of a subordinate officer. His crime 
was quite a venial one ; but, in order to extort money, 
he was tortured so barbarously that the blood streamed 
from his mouth, and he was dead in an horn*. 



300 



THE MISSIONARY- LABORS 



"I am afraid, that, while the present monster is in 
power, I shall not be able to convene the disciples 
for worship, as hitherto. He is, however, only acting 
on the orders which are understood to be in force all 
over the' country, prescriptive of the christian reli- 
gion. I feel the blow most deeply, for I had just 
succeeded in reorganizing a little church, out of old 
materials and some lately baptized, amounting in 
number to eleven, nearly all purely Burmese; and 
last Sunday I had an assembly of above twenty. 
Several new ones were expected to-day ;, and two 
would probably have been baptized. I had become 
so attached to the little church and assembly, and so 
glad, on every returning Lord's day, to lay aside 
my tedious dictionary labors, and spend all the day 
in obtaining and communicating spiritual refresh- 
ment, that the present interruption seems almost too 
hard to bear. However, I hope to do something 
yet, in private, to aid a few perishing souls, who are 
struggling through darkness and terror, to find a 
way of escape from the more dread darkness and 
terror of eternal death. But everything must be 
done in private. Not even a tract can be given 
publicly. That point I ascertained a few years ago, 
on a visit to the place, which, I believe, I never 
mentioned in writing home. In order to test the 
real extent and efficacy of the king's order, prohibit- 
ing the distribution of books at Ava, I opened a box 
of tracts in the front part of the house where I was 
a guest for a few days. The people took them greed- 
ily ; bat in less than an hour, my assistant, Ko En, 



OF ADOXIEAM JUDSOIST. 



301 



was arrested and placed in confinement. It cost me 
a great deal to get him free ; and when he was re- 
leased, it was on condition that he would give no 
more tracts. This time, therefore, I brought no tracts 
for distribution, and have confined myself to private 
conversation, except convening an assembly for wor- 
ship, — and that in an 'upper room,' — every Lord's 
day. m 

"June 6. Lord's clay. — Xo formal worship ; but a 
fine young man, whom we had concluded to receive 
into the church, son of one of the oldest converts, 
spent the clay with me, in company with two or three 
others ; and just at night we repaired to the remote 
side of the old baptizing place, and, under cover of 
the bushes, perpetrated a deed, which, I trust,, our 
enemies will not be able to gainsay or invalidate, to 
all eternity. 

"8. — Yesterday morning, the young man, on re- 
turning to his residence, a few miles distant, met 
his father under arrest, in the hands of the myrmi- 
dons of government, on their way to the court of the 
governor — not, I was glad to learn, the ferocious 
vice-governor above mentioned. One of the con- 
verts ran to give me notice ; and for two or three 
hours I sat expecting the worst. But the blow was 
averted, as suddenly as it was aimed. ' What have 
you brought the man before me for ? ' said the officer. 
'To be examined on a charge of heresy and frecpient- 
ing the house of Jesus Christ's teacher, 5 said the 
leading accuser. ' On what authority ? ' ' Here is 
your written order.' 'What — who — J have given 



302 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



no order. It must be one of my petty clerks. It is 
all a mistake. Go about your business.' ' I thought 
it strange,' rallied the arrested, ' that you should 
summon me on a charge of heresy, as it is. well 
known that I worship the true God.' £ God,' said 
the officer, rather nettled, ' worship any God you 
like ' — ■ ' or the devil,' promptly added a virago, sit- 
ting on an official cushion, at his side, — 'if you 
villagers just pay your taxes, what more do we want 
of you?' 

"As near as we can ascertain the truth of this 
strange affair, the officer, after sending off the order 
early in the morning, not entertaining the least doubt 
that the measure would be approved, as the religion 
of Jesus Christ is understood to be universally pro- 
scribed, stepped, however, into the government 
house and reported what he had done ; and the 
governor, remembering his pledge to me on my 
first arrival, quashed the proceedings. Thanks be 
to God. 

"And this is not the first favor he has done me, as 
I have just learned by a very private confidential 
communication from a sworn employee of govern- 
ment, a friend of mine, though not of the cause. A 
few days since, one of the highest members of gov- 
ernment, represented to his excellency, that two or 
three years ago, under the administration of his pre- 
decessors, three of these heretical teachers, (he meant 
brethren Ingalls, Stevens, and Vinton,) came from 
Maulmain, with the intention of effecting a settle- 
ment in the empire ; that he mentioned their arrival 



OF ADONLRAM JUDSOlSr. 



303 



to the then governor, who left their disposal entirely 
in his hands, on which he ordered them out of the 
country ; and that the said teachers then pretended 
they had not come to stay, and immediately took 
their departure. On hearing this, the governor kept 
his head bent over his breakfast, and made no reply. 
And the officer, feeling that he had not sufficient 
encouragement to bring forward my case, withdrew 
to wait for a more convenient season. But the teirm 
of this governor's rule is drawing to a close ; and it 
is expected by many, that he will be succeeded by 
the ferocious vice-governor. 

"13.. Lord's clay. — Not an individual ventures to 
come near me. I am advised to make friends with 
the vice-governor, by whose orders the house is 
watched, and whose authority is now paramount to 
that of the governor, a weak old man, who suffers 
himself to be set at defiance ; but I think that an 
attempt of -that sort would but expose the cause to 
greater danger. 

"I am persuaded, as I have been for years past, 
that the only way to keep footing in Rangoon, is to 
obtain some countenance at Ava. My principal 
object in coming hither was to ascertain the practica- 
bility and probable advantage of proceeding to the 
capital. The present governor has given his permis- 
sion, and the season favorable for going up the river 
is not far distant. But at the approaching crisis, I 
find myself destitute of the requisite means. The 
Board have approved the measure, but have not 
been able to accompany their approval with the 



304 



THE MISSIONARY LABOKS 



needful remittance. On the contrary, I learn from 
my last letters from Maulmain, that the annual 
appropriation for the Burman mission, is ten thou- 
sand rupees less than the current expenses require ! 
The brethren have been obliged to retrench in every 
department, instead of being able to make an appro- 
priation for a new enterprise. My extra expense in 
Rangoon, for assistants and house rent, is eighty six 
rupees a month, and they have been able to allow 
me seventeen and a half only ! The mission secre- 
tary writes me, that for anything beyond that sum, I 
must look, not to their treasury, but to the Board. 
Instead, therefore, of entering on a new and expen- 
sive undertaking, I find myself unable to remain in 
Rangoon. But no; I might hope that an appeal 
home would provide means for remaining here ; but 
in present circumstances, unable to remain, to any 
advantage, without making friends at Ava, and hav- 
ing no hope that the Board will be able to commence 
a new station, or even sustain the old ones much 
longer, there remains nothing for me but to fall back 
upon Maulmain." 

With some of his most cherished hopes withering, 
Mr. Judson returned to Maulmain, in September, 
and resumed his labors on the dictionary. Writing 
on the 19th of the same month, he says : 

"I remained in Rangoon long enough to witness 
the removal of my friend, the governor, and the 
downfall of the ferocious vice-governor, who had 



OF ADOXIEAM JUDSON. 



305 



become the terror of all classes, and particularly dis- 
tinguished himself "by carrying out the proscription 
of the christian religion. 

" I prolonged my stay a little, in order to ascertain 
the disposition of the new governor ; but in that I 
found nothing but discouragement. He very soon 
gave several proofs of strict adherence to the estab- 
lished religion ; his reception of me was extremely 
cold and reserved ; and when I mentioned my desire 
of proceeding to Ava, at some future time, he did 
not even reply. I think, however, he would not 
oppose that measure ; but, in present circumstances, 
for reasons mentioned in my last, it is impracticable. 
I therefore concluded to return to Maulmain, and 
arrived here on the 5th instant. 

"Brother Stevens, having had his own house 
burned down, had taken up his residence in mine, 
contiguous to the native chapel. I have, therefore, 
taken shelter in the house lately occupied by brother 
Simons, though rather remote from missionary opera- 
tions, where I intend to make an effort to finish the 
dictionary. But I hope, also, to preach occasionally 
in the native chapel, one sermon, at least, every 
Lord's day, and attend to such other missionary work 
as may be given me to do." 

In April, 18^8, Bev. "William Moore and wife, 
joined the Maulmain mission, connecting themselves 
with the Karen department, and living at JSTewton. 
This is the name given, about that time, to the north- 
erly part of Maulmain, and was now regarded as a 



306 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



distinct station. The missionaries to the Karens, 
associated with Mr. and Mrs. Moore at this date, 
were Rev. Messrs. Binney, Harris, and Mason, and 
Miss Vinton — Rev. J. H. Vinton and wife, "being 
on a visit to this country. The schools, theological 
and normal, for the Karens, were very prosperous. 
Four graduates of the former were ordained in Feb- 
ruary, 1847, a circumstance which was looked upon 
as " one of the most gratifying and auspicious inci- 
dents in the history of the Maulmain and Karen 
mission," that year. 

After Mr. Judson's return from Rangoon, aside 
from his duties as a lexicographer, he preached once 
a day on the Sabbath, in the Bur man chapel ; and 
ere long assumed the pastoral relation to the Bur- 
man church, in place of Mr. Stevens, who removed, 
for a short time, to Amherst to supply a vacancy 
occasioned by Mr. Haswell's illness and departure, 
with his wife, for this country. 

The last mentioned gentleman, prior to his em- 
barkation, had resided several months at Maulmain 
preaching both in the Peguan and Burman lan- 
guages. He completed the Peguan lN r ew Testament 
in the summer of 1847. 

While the American laborers in the Burman de- 
partment of the Maulmain mission were diligent 
in their several Callings, the native assistants were 
probably no less industrious. The thirty-fourth an- 
nual report of the Board, slightly condensed, speaks 
as follows in regard to their efforts : 



OF ADOXIEAir JUDSO^. 307 

« 

" Much preaching is performed by the native 
preachers in Maulniain. The city is an oblong of 
several miles extent, with a native population of 
some thirty or forty thousand. To secure the more 
general dispensation of the gospel, the following 
arrangements have long been in existence. Hea* 
the Burmese chapel stands a brick zayat, which is 
daily occupied, Sundays excepted, by one or more 
native preachers, declaring the gospel daily, some- 
times indeed to few, and at other times to scores 
in one day. Another zayat is in the north part 
of the town, near the great bazaar, not so old a 
preaching stand as the former, but, in some respects, 
much superior to it. The fame of these two zayats 
in particular has spread far into Burmah Proper. 
In the south part of the town, in Moung Xgau's 
district, is another house fitted up to hold evening 
meetings in, and occupied by a preacher and his 
family. One of his sons lives near him, also a 
preacher. For many years a lamp has been burn- 
ing in that house. Many have heard the gospel 
there ; and the neighborhood well knows, by precept 
and example, what Jesus Christ's religion is. Still 
further south, on the same road, stands another sim- 
ilar house, but less recently occupied by preaching. 
Another christian house, occupied by two native 
preachers and their families, is situated near the 
north-east end of the town, not very far from the 
location of the Karen mission, and in the midst of 
a population twice as large, perhaps, as that of Am- 
herst. That part of the town is specially assigned 



308 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



to tliem ; and is it their daily practice to go from 
house to house, to the bazaars, funerals, and other 
places and occasions of concourse, making known 
the grace of the gospel. Besides the preachers as- 
signed to these five stations, two others understand 
it to be their particular duty to itinerate through 
the town, and preach wherever they can obtain a 
hearing. 

u The assistants are doing a great work, and from 
Maulmain the truth is sounded out to the remotest 
parts of Burmah Proper, as well as throughout the 
provinces of Tenasserim. They daily meet with 
traders and others from all parts of the country, 
and make known to them the leading doctrines of 
the gospel, answer their objections, and give them 
tracts and portions of Scripture, which are thus 
scattered abroad as upon the wings of the wind. 
And though some seed falls by the wayside, some 
among thorns, and some among stony places, some 
also must fall upon good ground and bring forth 
fruit to the glory of God. The truth is working 
its way into the hearts of the people in town and 
country." 



CHAPTEE XXIII. 



Christian Reciprocity — Mr. Judson proposes to visit Ava — Temporary Abandon- 
ment of the Project — Failure of Mr. Abbott to reenter Burmah Proper — 
Messrs. Kincaid and Dawson appointed to the Ava Mission — Latest Intelli- 
gence from them — The Burman Dictionary. 

Sweet is christian reciprocity, and beautiful are 
its manifestations. The people, for whom our pray- 
ers have been so frequently offered, and to whom 
the gospel has been sent, are beginning, in part, to 
reciprocate the favor. A few months since, we saw 
a member of the Xowgong Orphan School, in As- 
sam, worshiping with the members of the church in 
Buffalo, to which the female teacher in that school 
belongs — rejoicing, that the light of truth has been 
sent to benighted Assam ; pleading for the benedic- 
tion of Heaven to rest upon those who had been 
instrumental in teaching him the true religion; and 
beseeching sinners in christian America to be recon- 
ciled to Christ. 

Another instance of christian reciprocity — one 
which strikingly illustrates its beauty, and the power 



310 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



and worth, of the religion that prompts it — is record- 
ed by Mr. Judson. Writing on the 21st of May, 1848, 
he says: u I have just re toned from the Burmese 
chapel, where I have been endeavoring to do some- 
thing analogous to what I suppose many ministers 
are doing before their respective churches, on this, 
the first Sabbath subsequent to the annual meeting 
of the Union. I improved the occasion to impress on 
my hearers their obligations to christians in Amer- 
ica, for having sustained this mission through the 
long period of thirty-five years — and not this mission 
only, but missions throughout the world ; that there 
are, at present, above a thousand American mission- 
aries, of different denominations, scattered over the 
habitable globe. It is true, that the relative positions 
of the parties would not allow them to manifest their 
gratitude in such a manner as the christians of Ma- 
cedonia and Achaia manifested their gratitude to the 
poor brethren in Jerusalem, (Rom. iv : 26, 27 ;) but 
they could be convinced of their obligations ; they 
could ponder on them and converse about them, 
until their hearts burned with gratitude and love 
to their American brethren, and to the Saviour, the 
Lord of missions. They could, though separated by 
wide oceans, meet at the same throne of grace ; and 
though they could not extend their own hands in 
kindness, they could open that Hand which is re- 
plete with every good and perfect gift, and cause 
a shower of blessings to descend on their distant 
benefactors. They could gladden their hearts and 
the heart of their Saviour, by living according to 



OF AD OK IE, AM JTJDSON, 



311 



the precepts of the holy religion which had been 
sent them : and is there any thing sweeter and no- 
bler in this world, than to gladden the hearts of 
our. benefactors, especially of our great Benefactor, 
who laid clown his life for us ? And, lastly, they could 
second the intentions of their American brethren, 
by making every effort to spread the gospel around 
them. ' Freely ye have received, freely give.' I 
never had a more attentive audience. May God 
bless the feeble effort, and the efforts of my brethren 
dining the past week, in drawing into closer union 
the far-separated members of Christ's body, until 
we become one in him for evermore." — Thus the 
churches of Asia salute their sisters in America. 

While Mr. Judson was at Eangoon, in 1817, the 
government interpreter of that city often urged him 
to proceed to Ava, and reap the superior advantages 
there afforded for the prosecution of his great liter- 
ary task; but it will be recollected that a serious 
obstacle lay in his way, in the low state of the 
mission funds. Early in the autumn of 18-18, the 
prospect for visiting the capital seemed to assume 
a feasible aspect, and Mr. Judson wrote on the 23d 
of September, revealing his plan to the Board : 

" The preparation of the English and Burmese 
part of my dictionary is so far advanced, that I hope 
to commence printing a small edition next month, 
preparatory to a larger and uniform edition of both 
parts, when the Burmese and English part is com- 
pleted. But, as I advance in the latter part, I feel 



312 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



more deeply the desirableness and importance of 
making a visit to Ava, and availing myself of the 
learned men and the literary works that are to be 
found at the capital alone. The government inter- 
preter of Rangoon, who greatly befriended me during 
my visit to the place last year, lately wrote me, that 
he hoped I would bear in mind the necessity of 
going to Ava before I printed the work, and that if 
I did not, it would be impossible for me to make it 
what it ought to be. I presume that no person, ac- 
quainted with the circumstances of the case, would 
dissent from that opinion. But the difficulty of pen- 
etrating into the country, and staying long enough 
to improve the dictionary, is very great; while the 
importance of the undertaking will appear still great- 
er, if some view be had to the welfare of the scat- 
tered church, and the necessity of conciliating the 
government, and obtaining, if possible, some religious 
toleration. 

" When last in Rangoon, I lost a favorable oppor- 
tunity, such as may not occur once in a hundred 
years. The governor of Rangoon was the very last 
of all my old court acquaintances ; and he was ready 
to clear my way to Ava, and, by a letter of introduc- 
tion, into the very presence of the king. But I had 
no money to buy a boat, pay the boatmen, and de- 
fray the other inevitable expenses of the undertak- 
ing, nor even to pay my house-rent in Rangoon ; so 
I was obliged to return to this place. The commit- 
tee have since kindly defrayed the debt contracted 
on the latter account ; but this is all. I suppose 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSON. 



313 



they thought, with me, that such a good opportunity 
would never occur again, and that no benefit would 
result from lamenting over the past, or providing for 
the future, a future so utterly improbable. There is, 
however, at the present moment, a small prospect in 
the horizon, which may, in a few months, diclose an 
open path to Ava. If such should be the case, the 
committee, as well as myself, would regret that my 
hands were still left tied, and another opportunity 
be irretrievably lost. I request, therefore, that they 
will take into immediate consideration the question 
of appropriating a sum, say one thousand rupees, to 
defray the expenses of such an undertaking as I 
speak of; and they may depend, that I shall render, 
as in former times, a minute and, I hope, satisfactory 
account of the way in which the money shall be 
expended. 

" I should endeavor to make it a point, before 
leaving this, not only to see one part of the diction- 
ary out of the press, but the other part brought to 
such a state, that it may be transcribed and a copy 
left with the mission, in case of ulterior accident." 

Rejoiced that Mr. Juclson was again entertaining 

the project of taking up his abode at the capital, 

the executive committee cheerfully and promptly 

responded to his request, placing at his disposal 

pecuniary facilities for the contemplated removal. 

The appropriation reached him in February, 1849, 

and, writing from Maulmain, on the 20th of August 

following, he says : 
14 



314 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



" As you see from the date, I am still at Maulmain. 
Before receiving yours of the 20th of February last, 
with the appropriation for the expenses of a journey 
to Ava, the \ small prospect in the horizon,' men- 
tioned in mine of the September preceding, had 
passed away; and since that, nothing encouraging 
has occurred. "Were it not, however, for the follow- 
ing reason, I should prosecute my first intention ; 
for, so far as a mere journey to Ava is concerned, I 
know of no obstacle in the way of any foreigner 
who wishes to proceed thither. 

" Just as I had finished the English and Burmese 
part of the dictionary, at the close of last year, and 
was about commencing the Burmese and English 
part, Providence sent me without my seeking, an 
excellent Burmese scholar, once a priest at Ava, and 
recommended by a gentleman quite competent to 
appreciate his qualifications, (since deceased,) as ' the 
most profound scholar he had ever met with.' I 
took him at once into my employ, and his aid, 
united with that of my other assistants, proves to be 
invaluable, and, in my opinion, obviates much of 
the necessity of going to Ava, so far as the dictionary 
is concerned. 

" Considering, therefore, the uncertainty of life, and 
the state of my manuscript, so effaced by time or so 
erased or interlined as to be illegible to any other 
person but myself, I have thought it was my duty 
to forego, for the present, what I can not but regard 
as an interesting expedition, in order to drive for- 
ward the heavy work of the dictionary in the most 



OF ADOHIRAM JHDSON. 



315 



satisfactory manner, and without incmTing the haz- 
ard of any serions interruption ; — provided always, 
that in the mean time nothing particularly encour- 
aging, in the direction of Ava, should occur. 

I hope, however, that the appropriation of the 
executive committee will not be withdrawn, but that 
I may be allowed to consider it available at the very 
earliest opportunity/' 

It may be needless to mention, that Mr. Judson 
had a double purpose in view, in case he should be 
permitted to visit the capital of the empire. He 
wished not only to avail himself of the literary ad- 
vantages of the place, but to make known the gospel 
to the new monarch and his idolatrous subjects. 
Yet " nothing particularly encouraging in the direc- 
tion of Ava,'* was seen that year, — and he was to 
stand in the golden presence no more ! 

Mr. Abbott, the hero of Sandoway, attempted to 
reenter Burmah Proper, in 1819, and failed ; but he 
hoped, some day, to make another and a successful 
attempt. He writes, ; ' Could I only get there, and 
live with those Karen clmrches a few months, the 
fearful excitement which my first going into the 
country induces, would die away, and the govern- 
ment, I think, would not disturb the people on my 
account. But I must await the indications of Prov- 
idence, holding myself in readiness to enter the 
country, at a moment's warning." 

How long the golden frown is to rest on the meek 
harbingers of the richest tidings, is known only to 



316 



THE MISSIONARY LABOE8 



Him who sees the end of the heathen's wrath, and 
has appointed the time for their redemption. Possi- 
bly, even now, faint gleams of the slowly-breaking 
millennial morn, may he tipping the spires of the 
golden palace. The Board, seeing a " small pros- 
pect in the horizon," last year appointed Mr. Ivin- 
caid and J. Dawson, M. D., to recommence, if prac- 
ticable, the mission at Ava. Whether they have 
proceeded all the way thither, it is not known. The 
latest intelligence received from them is contained 
in the following communication from Mr. Kincaid, 
dated at Rangoon, March 10, 1851 : 

"After remaining eleven days in Manlmain, Dr. 
Dawson and I took passage in a schooner of thirty- 
one tons, manned by Mussulmans, and the morning 
of the 5th, reached Rangoon, now little more than 
one wide ruin. The fire, last December, destroyed 
about three-fourths of the old city. Isot only so, but 
a great number of boats and several ships were 
burned. Many hundreds of families barely escaped 
from their houses with their lives. Building is rap- 
idly going on, and hence all sorts of material and all 
kinds of workmen are in demand. 

"It being exceedingly doubtful about our being 
able to procure a house, we left our families in brother 
Simon's house, and came on to see what arrange- 
ments could be made. One street, called Ko la don, 
that is Foreigner's street, was saved entirely from 
the fire. The buildings are owned and occupied by 
Armenians, Mussulmans, and Hindoos. We called 



OF ADOHIKAll JUD50X. 



311 



at once at the house in which I had Jived rdneteeii 
years ago, owned by a Hindoo. The old man is 
dead ; but his son received me with great cordiality, 
and gave us a room to occupy while in the city. 
When we first landed, we showed ourselves at the 
custom house, and got our baggage passed. A few 
hours after, we were sent tor and questioned relative 
to our business : where we came irom : the name of 
the ship ; the name of the captain ; what places we 
stopped at, if any; how many days we were in 
reaching Africa ; how many days we remained there ; 
how long in reaching Maulmain ; how many days we 
remained there : how many languages we understood ; 
and many other questions of a similar character : and 
all was written down with great minuteness. The next 
day we were sent for again, and questioned relative 
to our object in coming into Buraiah, and if we 
were 4 Jesus Christ's men ; ? all of which was written 
down, and then read to us. and the inquiiy put, if it 
was written correctly. On Saturday, we were sent 
for again, and questioned relative to Dr. Dawson ? s 
knowledge of medicine, and how many kinds of dis- 
eases he could cure. Upon this Dr. D. brought a vol- 
ume on surgery, foil of illustrative plates : this the 
officers examined with care, and another record made. 

" On Sabbath morning the viceroy sent for me. I 
told the secretary to inform his excellency that this 
was a sacred day, and I could not attend to any 
worldly business. This, it seems, was satisfactory; 
but Lord's day evening, betweeen nine and ten 
o'clock, the secretary came, and said I would be 



318 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



called early in the morning, and was to be ques- 
tioned in reference to my former residence in Ava. 
He manifested no small degree of anxiety, thinking 
they were contriving a plan to get me into difficulty. 
He is a fine young man, and appears to be a true 
friend ; but he is very timid. Not long since, how- 
ever, an English merchant was imprisoned and his 
feet put in the stocks, because his father had, as they 
alleged, written a letter against the government in 
one of the Calcutta papers. It cost him between 
five and six hundred rupees to get out of prison. 
Several foreigners have been imprisoned during the 
last six months on the most frivolous pretences, and 
money extorted from them. 

" Early this morning, I was called to the custom 
house, and questioned in reference to the year I first 
came to Burmah, how long I lived in Rangoon, and 
how long in Ava, and other points of a similar char- 
acter ; and my answers were all written down. One 
could almost fancy himself before a set of inquisi- 
tors. One of the officers afterward came and apolo- 
gized ; he said it was the order of the viceroy, or 
governor, and his authority was supreme. I replied, 
that we had no objection to answer any questions 
the government was disposed to ask. All the officers 
whom I had formerly known, treated us with civility. 
The viceroy is a new man, as are also all the high 
officers of the empire. The temper and policy of the 
government have changed amazingly since the revo- 
lution in 1837. When I have had more experience, 
I will write more definitely. 



OF ADONIRAM JUDSON. 



319 



"Ko Thah- a, the venerable old pastor, has called 
on ns two or three times ; also, two other members 
of the church. The news of our arrival spread rap- 
idly over the city and into the neighboring villages, 
and many with whom I had formerly been acquaint- 
ed, called, — among them two young men who had 
been educated in Mrs. Kincaid's school at Ava. 
Armenians, Mohammedans, and Hindoos have vis- 
ited us. A Jew from Bagdad has spent two even- 
ings with us, listening to our account of the Messiah. 
Dr. Dawson conversed with him in Hindostani, as 
he does not understand Burman very well. He 
inquired if it was possible to get the life of Christ in 
Hebrew or Arabic. I promised to try, as he under- 
stands those languages perfectly. We must, if pos- 
sible, get the Scriptures in seven or eight different 
languages. 

" Dr. Dawson's professional character has spread 
reports abroad that all sorts of diseases can be cured, 
and persons are nocking in to test his skill. Among 
them are several interesting cases. We have suc- 
ceeded in procuring a house, and shall bring our 
families to Eangoon as soon as possible. 

" I have as yet obtained no information about the 
church in Ava. There can not be many members 
there ; some have died, and I find eight of the Ava 
disciples now members of the churches in Amherst 
and Maulmain ; one is in Arracan." 

The publication of the first part of the dictionary, 
was commenced in 1849, and the first two signatures 



320 



MISSIONARY LA.BOES. 



were forwarded, as specimens of the work, to the 
mission rooms, accompanied by a note from Mr. 
Judson in which he says : 44 The work will make a 
quarto volume of about six hundred pages. We are 
printing a small edition of three hundred copies 
only. When the Burmese and English part is com- 
pleted, and the first part revised, we shall probably 
issue a much larger edition of both parts, in two 
volumes quarto." 

Alas ! Mr. Judson was never to see the whole of 
the first part printed, nor the Burmese and English 
part completed.* When the latter was about half 
finished, failing health forced him to relinquish it; 
and Mr. Stevens is now reexamining and verifying 
the materials, and recasting a part of the work, 
which was written in cipher by the hand that has 
now forgotten its cunning, and is at rest, where 

(< tlie sands are bright as the stars that glow 

In the motionless fields of upper air." 



* The printing of the English and Burmese dictionary was com- 
pleted in January, 1851. 



CHAPTEE XXIY. 



Mr. Judson's last Illness — Fruitless Efforts for his Restoration — Beautiful De- 
cline of a Life of Faith — Mr. Judson embarks for the Isle of Bourbon — Mr. 
Ranney accompanies him — Last Moments of Mr. Judson — His Death and 
Burial. 

Iii the latter part of September, 1819, Mr. Judson 
caught a severe cold while attending one of his 
children, who was taken suddenly ill, in a damp and 
chilly night ; and from that time health was a stran- 
ger to him. He did not, however, entirely relin- 
quish his studies until the month of November. In 
January following, he took a trip to Mergui, accom- 
panied by his wife, and returned without having 
realized material benefit. His physician then ad- 
vised him to again try the effects of sea breezes, and 
also of sea-bathing ; accordingly, again accompanied 
by his feeble yet faithful companion, he repaired 
to Amherst, where he remained nearly . a month, 
but without sensible improvement. On the 21st of 
February, he penned the following note, which, it 
may be needless to say, was received at the mission 
rooms, in Boston, with extremely painful feelings, 

and spread alarm through the land; 
14* 



322 



THE MISSIONAKY LABOES 



" I can not manage a pen, so please excuse pencil. 
I have been prostrated with fever ever since the 
latter part of last November, and have suffered so 
much that I have frequently remarked, that I was 
never ill in India before. Through the mercy of 
God, I think I am convalescent for the last ten days ; 
but the doctor and all my friends are very urgent 
that I should take a sea-voyage of a month or two, 
and be absent from the place a long time. May God 
direct in the path of duty. My hand is failing, so I 
will beg to remain, &c." 

His sufferings, hopes, and peace of mind in this, 
his last illness, are touchingly described by the gifted 
pen of Mrs. Judson, in a communication addressed 
to Miss Abigail B. Judson, his only surviving sister. 
The extracts which follow, and which are abridged to 
serve our purpose, and not because any parts are 
deficient in interest, present, in brightest colors, some 
of the loveliest traits of his character, and additional 
proof of the triumphs of the soul that is steadfast in 
Christ : 

"There was something exceedingly beautiful in 
the decline of your brother's life — more beautiful 
than I can describe, though the impression will re- 
main with me as a sacred legacy, until I go to meet 
him where suns shall never set and life shall never 
end. He had been, from my first acquaintance with 
him, an uncommonly spiritual christian, exhibiting 
his richest graces in the unguarded intercourse of 



OF ADONIEAM JTTDSON, 



323 



private life ; but, during his last year, it seemed as 
though the light of the world on which he was enter- 
ing, had been sent to brighten his upward pathway. 
Every subject on which we conversed, every book 
we read, every incident that occurred, whether trivial 
or important, had a tendency to suggest some pe- 
culiarly spiritual train of thought, till it seemed to 
me, more than ever before, 6 that Christ was all his 
theme.' Something of the same nature was also 
noted in his preaching, to which I then had not the 
privilege of listening. He was in the habit, how- 
ever, of studying his subject for the Sabbath, audi- 
bly, and in my presence, at which time he was 
frequently so much affected as to weep, and some- 
times so overwhelmed with the vastness of his con- 
ceptions, as to be obliged to abandon his theme, and 
choose another. My own illness, at the commence- 
ment of the year, had brought eternity very near to 
us, and rendered death, the grave, and the bright 
heaven beyond it, familiar subjects of conversation. 
Gladly would I give you some idea of the share 
borne by him in those memorable conversations ; but 
it would be impossible to convey, even to those who 
know him best, the most distant conception. I be- 
lieve he has sometimes been thought eloquent, both 
in conversation and in the sacred desk ; but the fer- 
vid, burning eloquence, the deep pathos, the touching 
tenderness, the elevation of thought, and intense 
beauty of expression, which characterized those pri- 
vate teachings, were not only beyond what I had 



324 



THE MISSIONAEY LABOKS 



ever heard before, "bnt such as I felt sure arrested his 
own attention, and surprised even himself. 

"As his health declined, his mental exercises at 
first seemed deepened ; and he gave still large por- 
tions of his time to prayer, conversing with the 
utmost freedom on his daily progress, and the extent 
of his self-conquest. Just before our trip to Mergui, 
he looked up from his pillow one day, with sudden 
animation, and said to me earnestly, 'I have gained 
the victory at last. I love every one of Christ's 
redeemed, as I believe he would have me love them, 
in the same manner, though not probably to the same 
degree, as we shall love one another in heaven ; and 
gladly would I prefer the meanest of his creatures, 
who bears his name, before myself.' This he said 
in allusion to the text, 'In honor preferring one 
another,' on which he had frequently dwelt with 
great emphasis. After further similar conversation 
he concluded, 4 And now here I lie at peace with all 
the world, and, what is better still, at peace with my 
own conscience. I know that I am a miserable sin- 
ner in the sight of God, with no hope but in the 
blessed Saviour's merits ; but I can not think of any 
particular fault, any peculiarly besetting sin, which it 
is now my duty to correct. Can you tell me of any 1 5 

"And truly, from this time, no other word would so 
well express his state of feeling, as that one of his own 
choosing — peace. He had no particular exercises 
afterward, but remained calm and serene, speaking 
of himself daily as a great sinner, who had been 
overwhelmed with benefits, and declaring that he 



OF ADOXIRAM JrDSON. 



325 



had never, in all his life before, had such delightful 
views of the imfiithomable love, and infinite conde- 
scension of the Saviour, as were now daily opening 
before him. ' O, the love of Christ ! the love of 
Christ ! ' he would suddenly exclaim, while his eye 
kindled, and the tears chased each other down his 
cheeks, 'we can not understand it now — but what 
a beantifnl study for eternity ! ' 

"At Amherst we remained nearly a month. This 
to me was the darkest period of his illness — no 
medical adviser, no friend at hand, and he daily 
growing weaker and weaker. He began to totter in 
walking, clinging to the furniture and walls when 
he thought he was unobserved, (for he was not wil- 
ling to acknowledge his debility,) and his wan face 
was of a ghastly paleness. His smTerings, too, were 
sometimes fearfully intense, so that in spite of his 
habitual self-control, his groans would fill the house. 
At other times, a kind of lethargy seemed to steal 
over him, and he would sleep almost incessantly 
for twenty-four hours, seeming annoyed if" he were 
aroused or disturbed. Yet there were portions of 
the time when he was comparatively comfortable, 
and conversed intelligently ; but his mind seemed to 
revert to former scenes, and he tried to amuse me 
with stories of his boyhood — his college days — his 
imprisonment in France, and his early missionary 
life. He had a great deal also to say on his favorite 
theme, c The love of Christ ; ' but his strength was 
too much impaired for any continuous mental effort. 
Even a short prayer, made audibly, exhausted him 



326 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



to such a degree, that he was obliged to discontinue 
the practice. 

"At length I wrote to Maulmain, giving some 
expression of my anxieties and misgivings, and our 
kind missionary friends, who had, from the first, 
evinced all the tender interest and watchful sympa- 
thy of the nearest kindred, immediately sent for us, 
the doctor advising a sea-voyage. But as there was 
no vessel in the harbor bound for a port sufficiently 
distant, we thought it best, in the meantime, to re- 
move from our old dwelling which had long been con- 
demned as unhealthy, to another mission-house, for- 
tunately empty. This change was, at first, attended 
with the most beneficial results, and our hopes revived 
so much, that we looked forward to the approaching 
rainy season for entire restoration. But it lasted 
only a little while, and then both of us became con- 
vinced, that, though a voyage at sea involved much 
that was exceedingly painful, it yet presented the 
only prospect of recovery, and could not, therefore, 
without a breach of duty, be neglected. 

" ' O, if it were only the will of God to take me 
now — to let me die here!' he repeated, over and 
over again, in a tone of anguish, while we were con- 
sidering the subject. ' I can not, can not go ! — this is 
almost more than I can bear ! was there ever suffer- 
ing like our suffering ! ' and the like broken expres- 
sions, were continually falling from his lips. But he 
soon gathered more strength of purpose, and, after the 
decision was fairly made, he never hesitated for a mo- 
ment, rather regarding the prospect with pleasure. 



OF ADONIEAM JUDSOX. 



327 



I think the struggle which this resolution cost, in- 
jured him very materially ; though probably it had 
no share in bringing about the final result. God, 
who saw the end from the beginning, had counted 
out his days, and they were hastening to a close. 
Until this time, he had been able to stand, and to 
walk slowly from room to room ; but as he one even- 
ing attempted to rise from his chair, he was suddenly 
deprived of his small remnant of muscular strength, 
and would have fallen to the floor, but for timely 
support. 

"From that moment his decline was rapid. As he 
lay helplessly on his couch, and watched the swelling 
of his feet, and other alarming symptoms, he became 
very anxious to commence his voyage, and I felt 
equally anxious to have his wishes gratified. I still 
hoped he might recover — the doctor said the chances 
of life and death were, in his opinion, equally bal- 
anced — and then he always loved the sea so dearly! 
There was something exhilarating to him in the mo- 
tion of a vessel, and he spoke with animation of get- 
ting free from the almost suffocating atmosphere 
incident to the hot season, and drinking in the fresh 
sea breezes. He talked but little more, however, 
than was necessary to indicate his wants, his bodily 
sufferings being too great to allow of conversation ; 
but several times he looked up to me with a bright 
smile, and exclaimed, as heretofore, 6 O the love of 
Christ ! the love of Christ ! ' 

" I found it difficult to ascertain, from expressions 
casually dropped, from time to time, his real opinion 



328 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



with regard to his recovery ; but I thought there was 
some reason to doubt whether he was fully aware of 
his critical situation. I did not suppose he had any 
preparation to make at this late hour, and I felt sure 
that if he should be called ever so unexpectedly, he 
would not enter the presence of his Maker with a 
ruffled spirit ; but I could not bear to have him go 
away, without knowing how doubtful it was whether 
our next meeting would not be in eternity ; and per- 
perhaps too, in my own distress, I might still have 
looked for words of encouragement and sympathy, 
to a source which had never before failed. 

" It was late in the night, and I had been perform- 
ing some little sick-room offices, when suddenly he 
looked up to me, and exclaimed, ' This will never do ! 
You are killing yourself for me, and I will not per- 
mit it. You must have some one to relieve you. If 
I had not been made selfish by suffering, I should 
have insisted upon it long ago.' 

"He spoke so like himself — with the earnestness 
of health, and in a tone to which my ear had of late 
been a stranger, that, for a moment, I felt almost 
bewildered with sudden hope. He received my 
reply to what he had said, with a half-pitying, half- 
gratified smile ; but in the meantime his expression 
had changed— the marks of excessive debility were 
again apparent, and I could not forbear adding, ' It 
is only a little while, you know.' 

"'Only a little while,' he repeated mournfully; 
' this separation is a bitter thing, but it does not dis- 
tress me now as it did — I am too weak.' 'You 



OF ADCXNTRAM JTDSON. 



329 



have no reason to be distressed,' I answered, ' with 
such glorious prospects before you. You have often 
told me it is the one left alone who suffers, not the 
one who goes to be with Christ.' He gave me a 
rapid, questioning glance, then assumed, for several 
moments, an attitude of deep thought. Finally, he 
slowly unclosed his eyes, and, fixing them on me, 
said, in a calm, earnest tone, ' I do not believe I am 
going to die. I think I know why this illness has 
been sent upon me — I needed it — I feel that it has 
done me good — and it is my impression, that I shall 
now recover, and be a better and more useful man. 9 

4 Then it is vour wish to recover ? ' I inquired. ' If 
it should be the will of God, yes. I should like to 
complete the dictionary, on which I have bestowed 
so much labor, now that it is so nearly done ; for, 
though it has not been a work that pleased my taste, 
or quite satisfied my feelings, I have never under- 
rated its importance. Then, after that, come all the 
plans that we have formed. O, I feel as though 
only just beginning to be prepared for usefulness.' 

" 'It is the opinion of most of the mission,' I re- 
marked, c that you will not recover.' ' I know it is,' 
he replied ; c and I suppose they think me an old 
man, and imagine it is nothing for one like me to 
resign a life so full of trials. But I am not old — at 
least in that sense — you know I am not. Oh ! no 
man ever left this world, with more inviting pros- 
pects, with brighter hopes or warmer feelings — 
warmer feelings,' — he repeated, and burst into tears. 
His face was perfectly placid even while the tears 



330 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



broke away from the closed lids, and Tolled, one after 
another, down to the pillow. There was no trace of 
agitation or pain in his manner of weeping ; but it 
was evidently the result of acute sensibilities, com- 
bined with great physical weakness. To some sug- 
gestions which I ventured to make, he replied, 'It is 
not that— -I know all that, and I feel it in my inmost 
heart. Lying here, on my bed, when I could not 
talk, I have had such views of the loving condescen- 
sion of Christ, and the glories of heaven, as I believe 
are seldom granted to mortal man. It is not because 
I shrink from death, that I wish to live ; neither is it 
because the ties that bind me here, though some of 
them are very sweet, bear any comparison with the 
drawings I at times feel toward Heaven ; but a few 
years would not be missed from my eternity of bliss, 
and I can well afford to spare them, both for your 
sake and for the sake of the poor Burmans ;• — I am not 
tired of my work, neither am I tired of the world ; 
yet, when Christ calls me home, I shall go with the 
gladness of a boy bounding away from his school. 
Perhaps I feel something like the young bride, when 
she contemplates resigning the pleasant associations 
of her childhood, for a yet dearer home — though 
only a very little like her — for there is no doubt 
resting on my future.'' 'Then death would not take 
you by surprise,' I remarked, ' if it should come even 
before you could get on board ship? ' ' Oh,. no,' he 
said, 'death will never take me by surprise — do not 
be afraid of that — -I feel so strong in Christ. He 
has not led me so tenderly thus far, to forsake me 



OF AD0XERA3I JTDS0X. 



ool 



at the very gate of heaven. Xo, no ; I am willing 
to live a few rears longer, if it should be so ordered, 
and if otherwise, I am willing and glad to die now. 
I leave myself entirely in the hands of God, to be 
disposed of according to his holy will.' 

" The next day, some one mentioned in his pres- 
ence, that the native christians were greatly opposed 
to the voyage, and that many other persons had a 
similar feeling with regard to it. I thought he 
seemed troubled, and, after the visitor had with- 
drawn, I inquired if- he still felt as when he con- 
versed with me the night previous. He replied, c O 
yes ; that was no evanescent feeling. It has been 
with me, to a greater or less extent, for years, and 
will be with me, I trust, to the end. I am ready to 
go to-day — if it should be the will of God, this very 
hour ; but I am not anxious to die — at least, when 
I am not beside myself with pain.' 

u 'Then why are you so desirous to go to sea; I 
should think it would be a matter of indifference to 
you?' 'Xo,' he answered quietly, 'my judgment 
tells me it would be wrong not to go — the doctor 
says criminal. I shall certainly die here — if I go 
away, I may possibly recover. There is no question 
with regard to duty in such a case ; and I do not 
like to see any hesitation, even though it springs 
from affection.' " 

These remarks were made with reference to a 
second voyage, which had now been decided on. He 
vras to visit the Isle of Bourbon, and for that purpose, 



332 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



being unable to walk or stand, a palanquin and 
bearers took him on board the French barque Aris- 
tide Marie, on the 3d of April. Arrangements had 
been made for the steamer Proserpine, then employed 
as a military transport, and bound southward that 
morning with troops, to tow the barque out of the 
river ; but owing to some misunderstanding between 
the commissioner of the provinces and the com- 
mander of the steamer, the latter craft was not 
allowed to perforin the stipulated service. The result 
was, that the barque was five days. in reaching Am- 
herst, and another day passed before the pilot left 
her. It is probable this delay in getting to sea was 
deleterious in its influence on Mr. Judson. 

Mrs. Judson, as well as two or three other mis- 
sionaries, was with him more or less while passing 
down the river ; and it was during those visits that 
a part of the conversation, which her pen has trea- 
sured, and which is recorded in the preceding pages, 
occurred. She was very anxious to accompany her 
husband — though it would have jeoparded her own 
life — but in compliance with his urgent request, she 
finally, on the fifth clay after he went on board the, 
vessel, took leave of him, to see his face no more on 
earth.* 



* Mrs. Judson has been an invalid for years ; and, being unfitted 
for the hardships of missionary life, it was Mr. Judson's particular 
request, that in case he should die first, she should return "with the 
children to this country. She sailed from Maulrnain, for Calcutta, 
January 22d ; and at this date, August 1st 1851, her arrival is looked 
for daily. 



OF ATjOXTRAAE JTDSOIS". 



333 



However alarming the apprehensions of his Mends, 
it was Mr. J nelson's opinion that he should return 
from the voyage ; and when the native assistants, 
two of whom, with a member of the Amherst chnrch, 
remained on board as long as the pilot, became 
alarmed on account of the swelling of his feet, and 
begged that he might be taken back to Maulmain, he 
observed to Air. Ranney, who accompanied him to 
sea, that they were frightened when they saw the 
condition of his limbs. " They regard it," said he, 
" as a sure sign of approaching death ; but I do not. 
I have talked with the doctor about this, and have 
remarked, at different times, the swelling and sub- 
siding. I still feel that there is so much of life in 
me that I shall recover.' ' "When the pilot and native 
disciples left the ship, Mr. Eanney wrote to Mrs. 
Judson, at Mr. Jndson's request, saying, as his opin- 
ion of himself, that, " he went out to sea with a strong 
feeling that he shoidd recover.*' 

During the first two or three clays of the voyage, 
he endured great pain at times, and was troubled 
very much with vomiting and a hiccough, the last of 
which ailments, he said, was killing him. About 
the third day, the captain administered medicine 
several times, without effect, which drew froni Mr. 
Judson the remark : ' ; It is of but little consequence. 
I do not wish any one to think that I die because all 
was not done that coidd be for me. The disease will 
take its course." 

Immediately preceding his spells of vomiting, he 
was seized with pain, which was so severe that it 



S34 



THE MISSIONARY LABORS 



seemed almost insupportable ; and while thus suffer- 
ing, on one occasion, he said : " Oh, that I could die 
at once, and go directly to paradise, where there is 
no pain ! " 

At another time, while conversing with Mr. Kan- 
ney, on expressing his gratitude to God that he had a 
christian friend on board, Mr. R. remarked that he 
hoped Christ was near, to sustain him ; to which he 
replied, " O yes ! it is all right them t I believe he 
gives me just so much pain and suffering as is neces- 
sary to fit me to die, — to make me submissive to 
his will." 

On the morning of the 11th, the day before his 
death, his eyes became dull and glassy, and remained 
half open while sleeping. Before noon, he took two 
doses of ether, which seemed to partially relieve 
him. About this time, after vomiting, which had 
been heralded by the acutest pain, he said, " Oh, how 
few there are who suffer such great torment — who 
die so hard!" 

For a day and a half immediately preceding his 
death, his agonies were almost incessant, and terri- 
ble. About noon, on the 12th, Mr. Ranney discovered 
a transient aberration of mind. " At three o'clock, 
he said, in Burmese, to Pinapah, a native servant, ' It 
is done, I am going.' Shortly after he made a sign 
with his hand downward, which was not understood. 
Drawing Mr. Ranney's ear close to his mouth, he 
said, convulsively, 'Brother Ranney, will you bury 
me ! bury me ! — quick ! quick ! ' These words 
were prompted, perhaps, by the thought of burial in 



OF ADOjSTEAM judson. 



335 



the sea crossing his mind. Mr. Ranney here being 
called out for a moment, Mr. Judson spoke to the 
servant in English and also in Burmese, of Mrs, 
Judson, bidding him i take care of poor mistress,' 
and at fifteen minutes past four o'clock he breathed 
his last." 

During the last few moments of his life, his mus- 
cles denoted no pain, and the placidity of the sunny 
land to which his soul was fleeing, rested on his 
face. " The moment of the going out of life," writes 
Mr. Eanney, " was indicated only by his ceasing to 
breathe. A gentle pressure of the hand, growing 
more and more feeble as life waned, showed the 
peacefulness of the spirit about to take its homeward 
flight." 

Such was the end of this great ana good man, who 
lived the life of faith. His transition to the clear sky 
above, was as glorious as his career on the clouded 
earth was sublime — 

" He sets, 

As sets the morning star, which goes not down 
Behind the darkened west, nor hides obscured 
Among the tempests of the sky — but melts away 
Into the light of heaven." 

At first, it was thought that the burial might be 
deferred until the next day, but necessity required 
that it should take place that night. Accordingly, 
the body was placed in a strong plank coffin, con- 
taining sufficient sand to make it sink, and in three 
hours and a half after Mr. Ranney had closed his 
sightless eyes, in latitude thirteen degrees north, and 



336 



MISSIONARY LABORS. 



longitude ninety-three degrees east, all that remained 
of the father of American Baptist Missions, glided 
in silence from the larboard port, and found its rest 
beneath those billows, whose solemn anthem is a 
fitting requiem for the Christian warrior. 

The captain of the American band, who are storm- 
ing the battlements of Burman idolatry, has fallen ; 
but let not his name be stricken from the lists. As 
the comrades of " the warrior of Breton birth, La Tour 
d'Auvergne, the first grenadier of France, as he was 
called," * insisted that, though dead, his name should 
not be erased, and one of the survivors regularly an- 
swered for the departed hero, " Dead on the field ; " 
so should it be with the name of Adoniram Jud- 
son. He lies in the sepulchre of his choice, only 
three days' sail from sight of the mountains of his 
adopted country ; and as his field was emphatically 
the world, and his monument, as it has been called, 
is the great deep, whose " drifting currents " wash 
the shores of every land ; so, in every stronghold of 
paganism, where the soldiers of the cross rally, let 
his name stand on the roll-call of the departed, and 
thus, though dead, he will yet speak, and " Judson " 
serve, until the redemption of our fallen race, as a 
watchword for decision of character, singleness and 
sublimity of purpose, perseverance amid Alpine ob- 
structions, implicit trust in God, and courageous 
firmness in the Thermopylses of Truth. 



* Williams' Religious Progress, page 48. 




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